Foreign Fighters To Iraq And Syria Have Doubled In 16 Months

Newsweek: Report: Number of Foreign Fighters in Iraq and Syria Double to 31,000

The number of foreign fighters who have entered Syria and Iraq to fight for militant groups, such as the Islamic State (ISIS), has more than doubled in 18 months, according to a new report.

There are now between 27,000 and 31,000 foreign fighters from 86 countries who have traveled to Syria and Iraq to join armed groups, more than double the 12,000 identified in June 2014, according to the Soufan Group, a New York–based international consultancy firm. The number of recruits from Western Europe has more than doubled in 18 months, while those from Russia and Central Asia have increased by nearly 300 percent, according to the report. The number of foreign fighters from North America has “remained relatively flat” since last year.

WNU editor: The Soufan Group's report on foreign fighters coming into Syria and Iraq is here .... Foreign Fighters: An Updated Assessment Of The Flow Of Foreign Fighters Into Syria And Iraq (Soufan Group).

More News On The Doubling Of Foreign Fighters In Iraq And Syria

Chart: The number of foreign fighters in Syria surged in 2015 -- Washington Post
Number of foreign fighters in Iraq and Syria doubles in a year, report finds -- The Guardian/AFP
Report: Foreign fighters to Syria, Iraq to fight for ISIL doubles -- Politico
Syria conflict: Number of foreign fighters 'doubled in 16 months' -- BBC
Number of foreign fighters pouring into Syria and Iraq has more than DOUBLED: ISIS has helped swell numbers past 27,000 in past year alone -- Daily Mail
Foreign fighters in Iraq and Syria have doubled in past year, report says -- ABC News (Australia)
Foreign fighters in Syria have doubled since 2014 -- The Hill
Despite Clampdown on Foreign Fighters, Extremists Ranks Swelling, Study Finds -- WSJ
Ex-British Spy Chief: Militants in Syria Attract 31,000 Foreign Fighters -- VOA
Foreign fighters in Syria, Iraq have doubled since anti-ISIL intervention -- Al Jazeera
ISIS Foreign Fighters Double? Islamic State In Syria And Iraq Could Grow More Dangerous As It Weakens, Report Says -- IBTimes
Foreign fighters in Iraq and Syria come from 86 countries—and their numbers have doubled -- Quartz

UN Report: Iraq And Syria Are 'Finishing Schools' For Foreign Extremists

Daily Mail: Syria, the finishing school for fanatics: More than 20,000 foreign fighters from 100 different nations have travelled to the country

 * Number of foreign fighters worldwide soared by 71% from mid-2014 to now
 * Syria and Iraq were most popular regions - mainly for IS and Al-Nusra Front
 * United Nations report said fighters came from over half world's countries
 * It warned if IS was defeated foreign fighters could scatter across the globe

More than 20,000 foreign fighters have fled to Syria and Iraq, turning the region into an ‘international finishing school’ for jihadists, an alarming report found.

Fighters from 100 nations – more than half the countries in the world – have joined militant groups such as Al Qaeda and Islamic State, according to research by the United Nations.

Worryingly, the report warned if IS was defeated in the war-torn region then the barbarous foreign fighters could be scattered across the world.

More News On The UN Report Outlining How Iraq And Syria Are Becoming 'Finishing Schools' For Foreign Extremists

Iraq and Syria are 'finishing schools' for foreign extremists, says UN report -- The Guardian
UN says '25,000 foreign fighters' joined Islamist militants -- BBC
Syria, Iraq a 'finishing school' for foreign fighters: U.N. report -- Reuters
U.N. Report: 25,000 Foreign Fighters Joining Islamist Militant Groups -- NPR
Terrorist Groups Like ISIS, Al Qaeda Attract More Than 25,000 Foreign Fighters: UN Report -- IBTimes
Flow of foreign fighters at record levels -- Sky News
Syria, Iraq turned into ‘international finishing school for extremists’ – UN report -- RT
UN report: ISIL held areas a ‘finishing school’ for foreign fighters -- CCTV
UN: Number of foreign fighters joining militants skyrockets to 25,000 -- Deutsche Welle
25,000 foreigners fight with Islamist militants: UN -- Al Bawaba

Afghanistan's 'Pristine Jihad' Draws In Outsiders Trained In Pakistan

Afghani warlord insurgents are being bolstered by men
from Saudi Arabia, Chechnya, Turkey and Pakistan

From Times Online:

Afghanistan is replacing Iraq as the destination of choice for international jihadists, Western intelligence agencies claim. Analysts have monitored a surge in online recruitment of “lions of Islam” to join the war in Afghanistan through jihadist websites, particularly in Saudi Arabia, Pakistan, Chechnya and Turkey, in the past year.

That is now being matched by evidence of an increase in foreign fighters entering Afghanistan, mostly from training bases established in the lawless Federally Administered Tribal Areas (Fata) of Pakistan, where Osama bin Laden is believed to be hiding.

One Kabul-based Western diplomat, who did not want to be named, said: “There is a change with an increase in attacks in the east [along the Pakistan border] and more chatter of foreign voices is being detected.”

Read more ....

My Comment: With the collapse of foreign forces and jihadists in Iraq, the only war arena that is still open to these fighters is Pakistan's tribal zones and Afghanistan. Like Iraq, I feel confident that with time they will also be defeated in Afghanistan and pakistan's tribal areas.