Returnees: Who are they, Why are not (not) coming back and How should we deal with them?

This report looks into policies on returning foreign fighters in these three countries. It is the very first systematic and in-depth study into national approaches and policies vis-à-vis returnees. Its added value lies in the wealth of data, including data that has not been published before, and, of course, in the comparative angle.

KEY FACTS:

• Early returnees were not systematically prosecuted, let alone convicted. This was based on an evaluation of their intentions and the presumption they posed a lesser threat, but also because the criminal code made it relatively difficult to prosecute these individuals. Women in particular were as a general rule not prosecuted (p. 4).

• One of the most anti-feminist militant organisations in recent world history drew unprecedented numbers of women from Western countries to join it. Nearly one in five Western European ISIS volunteers were women. Those who travelled for the promise of spiritual fulfilment and domestic bliss, and in some cases their children, bolstered the numbers of Europeans by nearly 20 percent.

• In Belgium, since 2016, women are as likely to be prosecuted as men. 

• In Germany, while male returnees almost always were subject to criminal investigations with regard to possible links to the Islamic State or other terrorist organisations, many prosecutors tended to search for additional evidence (adding to the fact of their departure) before opening a criminal investigation against women. However, in December 2017 the federal prosecutor general announced that henceforth no differences between men and women will be applied, thus accepting that the services provided by female members of the Islamic State, even when not combat-related, played a significant role in upholding the system.

The full report can be found here>>