(War on Terror) - Why the West should take back its jihadists

    

The global war on terror has been a costly one… Since 9/11 thousands of innocent lives were lost to a variety of attacks in major cities across the world, using tactics that until then defied belief and made many people worry about their safety in general.  Airliners, cars and lorries became weapons of war, people enjoying a night out were attacked in bars, streets, restaurants, beaches and even concert halls became legitimate targets for terror attacks…

Governments were quick to enact new laws that gave intelligence  agencies and police forces more leeway and resources to go after possible suspects and stronger, more reliable information sharing networks were established to help avoid new attacks… We went to war against terror groups in parts of the world they called their own and in some places were more successful in driving them out than others. We have lost thousands of servicemen, security and intelligence agents… and the war is not over. When one region is stabilized, another becomes a hotspot.

The current war on terror has changed, and will continue to change the mindset of the public as the war that once was fought on the other side of the world, has come to our own shores. The rise of the Islamic State in Syria and Iraq saw an unprecedented amount of foreign fighters travelling to the region to become citizens there, take up arms and fight against any nation that threatened it. Even from the West thousands of youngsters and entire families set off to join one of the groups in the region.

Rambo jihadism?

Although a portion of these westerners returned as soon as they realized that the reality wasn’t exactly as what they had been told through propaganda and recruiting channels, there were still more than enough prepared to keep the fight going. Some of them were killed as the conflict raged on but now that the tide has turned against some of them in the al-Sham region, there are concerns that these fighters might return home to either carry out attacks or set up new terror cells. There are however a number of them that were captured by allied forces on the ground, that were imprisoned and debriefed and now await their fate in a cell… but western governments aren’t too keen on taking them back…

The obvious reasons are that they might be (in)directly involved in planning future terror attacks. These individuals often have received the necessary training to carry out attacks in a variety of ways, using equipment that is available in modern society on a day-to-day basis. They have served at the front in some capacity, giving them the experience and knowledge on how to handle a variety of deadly weapon in a combat-like situation. They could share this knowledge with other individuals who are looking for ways to inflict damage and take innocent lives.

But even incarcerating them might give them an opportunity to recruit new members from vulnerable groups in prison, which in turn could carry out attacks or set up new terror cells after they are released. There are a lot of jihadists whose lives have gotten off the rails, who choose a life of (petty) crime and have been incarcerated before they were ‘found’ and given a chance at redemption through fighting a holy war for Islam against the apostates and non-believers. And there are a lot of the same vulnerable people incarcerated at this very moment, looking for an opportunity at redemption.

Setting up deradicalization programs is also a difficult thing as there are as many views on how to do it as there are people writing about it. Attempts have been already made, in Jordan for example, with some success but to truly be effective we would need to implement it on a much broader scale. In the best case new institutions (or wings) would have to be constructed to make sure that these individuals are kept segregated and controlled in a manner that allows them to be fully engaged before they are gradually released into the general population of an institution and, in due time, society itself.

Putting these individuals on trial might prove more difficult than anticipated as well… The process of gathering all the evidence that is required to build a solid case against these individuals depends on numerous factors, the most important two of which are time and money…  Two things most governments could be unwilling to spend large amounts of on a sensitive matter such as this in times like these.

Throw away the key?

Is letting these individuals continue to sit in a cell in a foreign country the best thing to do? One could argue that this is the consequence of choices they made, the result of a chain of events they have put in motion themselves. Not only did they leave, most of them berated their former countries and even threatened them with attacks and the implementation of sharia law in its society. Taking away their citizenship and just forget about them seems the quickest and easiest way out. The United Kingdom has just taken away the citizenship of more than one hundred jihadists, sending a clear signal that it no longer wants anything to do with them and that those who are considering to do the same should think twice before doing it. Other countries are probably looking into doing the same thing but caution is advised since it might break international laws as no person can be stateless… But there might be an even greater risk in not taking them back.

These men and women already have gained some sort of status by like-minded people, almost becoming poster boys for recruiters and potential candidates. By not addressing this situation we risk that these people will be eventually set free and either reconnect with members of their former organization or travel to a new potential theatre of war. A similar situation arose during the war in the Balkans in the 90s. Hundreds of jihadists were left behind after the fighting who in time travelled to Afghanistan and more recently, Syria. Even now there are still no-go zones where Salafist communities have free reign and their influence is spreading.

A new way of life?

Do we have to accept that terror attacks are becoming less of rarity in our cities’ streets? Yes, sadly it is becoming something we have to accept, at least for now. But it does not mean that it has to be like this indefinitely. We can choose to accept that we cannot stop every single one that is determined to take to the streets with the intentions of harming innocent bystanders. What we can do is look for ways to fight this war in a manner that determines that we will win it.

If we can show leniency to those who were led astray we can use them to tell about their experiences so that we can continue to understand how they got to that point. They can share their stories at schools, mosques and other venues to show that the message they were told is full of lies and empty promises.

I do not mean to say that these people need to be released into society as soon as they get debriefed and get off the plane. But they should be put on trial for the crimes they have committed, sentenced and been given the chance, just like any other offender to rehabilitate before becoming a part of our society once more.

If we continue to turn a blind eye to what has happened in the (recent) past without being prepared to do right thing, which might be more difficult, take longer and cost more instead of using the quick and easy solution, we continue to risk the lives of those around, those whom we love and hold dear for decades..


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