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Born in Europe to Fight Foreign Wars?

What can the EU do to prevent its citizens from leaving for Syria and Iraq to join the Islamic State and becoming a domestic threat once they return to European soil?

published by
euronews
 on October 8, 2014

Source: euronews

Speaking to on the Frontline on euronews, Marc Pierini was asked what he believes Europe should do to stop more of its citizens from joining militant groups, including the Islamic State (IS), in Syria and Iraq, and how unified the EU’s strategy is to deal with foreign fighters if and when they return home.

“The majority of the young people going to Syria are from poor neighborhoods, school dropouts, [with] no job and vague, very vague religious indoctrination,” Pierini said when asked if Europe should prevent people from being recruited to IS.

Pierini argues that Europe has not been inactive on this matter and has in fact been working on counterterrorism measures for a year. But, he says, the EU needs to do more, from reinforcing counterterrorism cooperation within the EU and with Turkey to strengthening the Schengen system within Europe.

This interview was originally aired on Euronews.

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