The Hague: DUTCH prosecutors have opened investigations into up to 190 nationals fighting alongside jihadist groups in Iraq and Syria, with the first trial set to open next month.
“These people believe they have said ‘goodbye’ to our judicial system. But we have not said ‘goodbye’ to them,” said Ferry van Veghel, a spokesman for prosecution service. “They have committed atrocious crimes, and think they are untouchable, but they are absolutely not.”
At least 280 Dutch citizens, a third of them women, have left The Netherlands to join the Islamic State (IS) and other groups in Syria and Iraq.
About 45 have been killed and another 45 have recently returned, leaving 190 believed to be still on the ground. Investigating them is “not simple”, relying largely on photos and videos posted on social media or messages sent to their families at home.
Those who return to the country will be immediately arrested, while others will be tried in absentia. A first hearing is due to open in Rotterdam on March 23 involving 10 alleged fighters “most likely in their absence”.
Last July a court in The Hague sentenced four men in absentia to six years in prison for joining IS, and for carrying out terrorist acts in Syria and Iraq between 2012 and 2014.
In a report this week the national counter-terrorism office AIVD said it expected to see more people returning to the country as IS comes under pressure from an all-out offensive by the US-led coalition.
