Why were these jihadis allowed to come back to France after waging jihad in Syria? The risk is high that returning jihadis will continue their jihad in their home countries. This is why the governments of Britain, the U.S. and Australia are worried about this as well. Not that many politicians in any of those countries have the will to devise effective legal means to confront this problem, much less to confront the ideology that motivated these jihad warriors in the first place.
“France formally investigates citizens suspected of Syria fighting,” Reuters, May 17, 2014:
PARIS, May 17 (Reuters) – Seven men suspected of fighting in Syria have been placed under formal investigation following their arrest in Strasbourg, said a judicial source on Saturday, weeks after France unveiled policies to prevent French Muslims from becoming radicalised.
Confirming a report in Le Monde newspaper, the source said the men aged 23 to 25, who were arrested in the eastern French city on Tuesday, were under investigation for criminal conspiracy in relation with a terrorist undertaking.
They were suspected of travelling to Syria late last year to join the uprising against Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.
European governments calculate several thousand of their citizens have gone to Syria since the war began three years ago and are worried about the security risk posed by youths radicalised by the conflict.
France, which estimates around 285 of its citizens are currently fighting in Syria among the rebels’ ranks, last month launched a plan to prevent its citizens joining the civil war and becoming a threat to their home country.
Under the new policies, French nationals who return from Syria could face charges of being part of a terrorist organisation, while minors could be prevented from leaving France without parental consent.
It also launched a hotline for parents concerned about their children’s behaviour.