More than 100 experienced IS fighters back in Germany, ministry says

More than 100 people who have returned to Germany after going abroad to join the Islamic State militia have battleground experience or have prepared for combat, according to the Interior Ministry in Berlin.

"For more than 100 of the people who have returned so far, the security authorities have knowledge that they have actively participated in fighting in Syria or Iraq or have completed training," a spokesperson revealed to journalists.

"These people remain the focus of police and judicial investigations," the spokesperson added.

According to the Interior Ministry, the authorities assume that more than 1,060 Islamist extremists left Germany in the past few years headed for Syria or Iraq. About a third of them are thought to be back in Germany.

The authorities are taking what they call a "holistic approach" that includes criminal prosecution and observation, as well as efforts to de-radicalise and reintegrate the former fighters.

Islamic State declared a self-styled caliphate in Iraq and Syria in 2014. Local troops and a U.S.-led international coalition gradually pushed back the extremists in both countries.

The Islamic State's last stronghold in eastern Syria was lost in March 2019.    (dpa)