‘AT LEAST 50,000 EUROPEANS ARE FIGHTING IN THE RANKS OF IS’

A conference of the European police officials was told in September this year that there are around 50,000 European fighters in the ranks of the terror outfit Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS).

“During a discussion on the threat posed by the ISIS in Europe, we were told that there were around 50,000 Europeans who have joined the ranks of the terror outfit. It makes Europe very vulnerable to terror attacks from these fighters who can come back any day and who also know major cities there from the back of their hands,” said Sharad Kumar, a participant in the conference as the director general of National Investigation Agency (NIA).

The Paris attackers on Friday also seemed to be very familiar with the city with the way the attack was carried out.

The conference, known as the European Police Chiefs Convention, was held on September 23 and 24 in the Europol headquarters and was attended by around 300 high-level representatives from 50 countries.

“Since the threat posed by the ISIS has global dimensions, for the first time India was also invited,” Kumar said.

The conference also discussed de-radicalisation measures to wean away the vulnerable sections of the society from the lure of the IS.

“Involving community, reaching out to educational institutions, using non-governmental organisations and using the social media space for countering the propaganda of the IS, were some of the measures discussed in the conference,” Kumar added.