The European national security faces serious threats because of many of the developments associated with European policies towards many global conflicts, especially in the Middle East. One of such problems is the flow of terrorists returning from areas of conflict in the Middle East (Syria and Iraq) to European countries. European security institutions have noted this problem and warned governments several many times. This requires European policy makers to take these threats into consideration as a result of their connection to European social peace.

Europe has recently seen an increasing number of young people joined to the most serious terrorist organization (ISIS) and participates in many of its activities in the Middle East, threating global security in general and in Europe in particular. Most of these operations were committed by Europeans young people who joined ISIS then returned to their European countries. One can therefore point to the reasons why young Europeans join the European Union:

Misunderstanding of Islam due to false reports and news about the establishment of the Islamic caliphate, without any proper theoretical dimensions on that subject. ISIS tries to raise sentiments among young people; it tries to convince them that jihad is a religious goal and not just a means of self-defense against aggression. In addition to negative impact of radical trends in Europe, which feed the minds of young Muslims with extremist ideas.

Indeed; Social disintegration in European society, especially among non-Muslim families who feel suffering and insecurity. Many of the German youth were monitored for joining the community after being exposed to social problems that caused psychological trauma, a tendency towards violence and extremism in addition to desire to take revenge on society as a whole.

In addition, Financial bad condition motivates young people ISIS which seduces them by money. Reports indicate that 14 Spanish families have joined an advocacy organization for material reasons. Each family of 4 people is given 20 thousand euros.

Problem of “Terrorists Returning to Europe” has become the most serious challenge facing the European countries. One can refer to a complex network of actual and potential terrorist threats. Patterns of terrorist returnees could be noted as follows:

1^st; Young people who try to prevent their parents from repeating the experiment.

2^nd; Thosewho have ideal ideas about fighting, then stumble into the fait accompli, but they try to deceive others by spreading ideas about the “Greatness” of jihad when they go back their home. This pattern is very dangerous for European countries.

3^rd; Terrorist activities which occurs through young people who have a tendency to violence in the name of Islam at home and abroad, they do not return to their countries after the implementation of terrorist attacks abroad. This pattern is the most dangerous to European security.

4^th. Some have a tendency to fight, but they discover the extent of the fighting, and decide not to participate again, and this pattern is not dangerous.

Returnees moved into Europe through two waves; the first was before the announcement of ISIS. Meanwhile the second began after the launch of the International Alliance against Terrorism.

European policies toward Returnees

European leaders have tried to adopt a unified policy to deal with returnees’ issues at the security and judicial levels. Security authorities view returnees as potential threats. In Germany, for example, a Munich court sentenced a 27-year-old man to 11 years in prison for receiving combat training in terrorist camps in Aleppo. The Graz Criminal Court convicted a 20-year-old girl of belonging to the terrorist organization and urged her to serve a one-year sentence. The girl, who was working as a dental assistant in Graz, identified a German and joined the terrorist organization. The latest statistics in Spain indicate that there are more than 170 detainees in Spanish prisons on charges of “jihadist terrorism” and that some of them are coming from a sympathetic.

However, security and legal measures for returnees from ISIS are insufficient. There are other policies that can be taken to address this crisis. The former French minister Valerie Piccres said in a statement that these jihadists have had intellectual deviations and that if they return they cannot be treated as ordinary criminals, because if they are in jail they can attract other people who are imprisoned.

As a part of growing threating in Europe, more than 5,000 European fighters are expected to return from Syria and Iraq after the massive Russian intervention in Syria, and the disappointment of these young people who imagined that a supporter was their dream. Some critical voices are emerging in Europe to demand that the issue of returnees be dealt with effectively. Some States have responded to these cases and have begun to set up centers for the psychological rehabilitation of returnees for the purpose of reintegrating them into society.

European security institutions recognize the gravity of extremist elements on European national security, there is a need to full-time monitoring as a force in accordance with a national strategy that converges with its domestic laws.Several countries are enacting new legislation to regulate the monitoring of returnees from Syria in areas that have experienced terrorist acts so as to avoid criticism from human rights groups and those who fear a tightening of surveillance outside the law.

Beside the legal actions that European countries may take, social integration policies will be pursued in some countries with a view to rehabilitating extremists again. The integration process will reduce the risk of extremists to European societies. Moreover, European governments can use the experiences of these citizens as counter-propaganda to polarize the extremists who are actively exploiting the situation of Muslims in the West. In order to achieve this, European countries must establish centers of intellectual rehabilitation especially for extremists, and in order to counter the spread of extremist ideology in general.

Looking Forward

Future of the terrorist phenomenon in Europe is linked to the seriousness of government policy coherence with what seems to be aware of the latest version of the counterterrorism strategy. Despite the seriousness of the vision and depth of the strategy, policies towards extremist organizations are to provide them with general protection, Public freedoms and expression rights, at a time when the British citizen feels the seriousness of those organizations on the security of his country.

Despite the recent legislative modernization of the anti-terrorism law in some European countries, two factors reinforce the potential for growing terrorism. Foreign policy of European countries towards the Middle East issues plays a pivotal role in bringing them under the influence of terrorist organizations. On the other hand, Europe is witnessing signs of a social crisis looming, related to the growing rate of young people involved in violence, whether on social, criminal or even religious grounds, as revealed by a British House of Commons report.

Therefore, Europe remains an open field for further terrorist operations in the near future, as long as the general situation is witnessing a separation between what the authorities declare on the one hand and their practices and attitudes towards terrorist organizations, as well as the shortcomings of London’s foreign policy, especially in the Middle East.

Extremists attempt to integrate themselves into the European community structure in order to avoid security oversight is still very likely, and these elements will then act to threaten European security, which could pose a fundamental threat to the European security services, Without the exposure of these individuals, Many laws within European countries do not criminalize the citizens to fight with extremist organizations or outside their territory, which means that the imposition of security control on these elements requires new legislation, which may take a long time.

Conclusion

• Extremists attempt to integrate themselves into the European community to avoid security oversight remains very likely. This may have a significant threat to the European security services, which may stand in the way of domestic laws
• Some European countries are still holding returnees out of fear because of their danger to Europe’s security.
• There has been a steady increase in the number of dissidents and people returning to their homes as a result of their disappointment in the terrorist organization after having seen his behavior on the ground.
• Judicial and security methods continues to dominate European countries in their handling of the issue of returnees.
• There is almost no intellectual and doctrinal review of returnees with the aim of correcting their intellectual path and convincing them of the inviolability of religion and the atonement of Muslims. While security authorities in European countries are trying to track down anyone who is suspected of belonging to an ideological hooligan, they fear that prisoners and detainees will become intellectual polarizers for other prisoners.

Prepared by; Social Studies Unit

References;

• United Nation Security Council, The Challenge of Returning and Returning and Relocating foreign Terrorist Fighters, Research Perspectives, CTED Trends Reports, March 2018. Counter Terrorism Committee, Executive Director, Available on; http://cutt.us/6S0U9
• Eman Ragab, Returning Foreign Terrorists: What Type of Security Challenges Are They Posing? RAN ISSUE PAPER, November, 2016.
• Bryan Passifiume, Ontario bill aims to strip returning terrorists of provincial privileges, October 19, 2018; http://cutt.us/G3SFJ
• The President of the European Parliament is concerned about the number of terrorists returning to Europe http://cutt.us/QFEe2

·     Alarms returning to Europe .. Numbers frightening, http://cutt.us/3C6sM

·     Abu Ali’s appeal, Europe lives the anxiety of returnees from the “extremist diaspora”, aawsa,http://cutt.us/ngZLv

·      Mubarak Ahmed, EU security and intelligence policies to counter terrorist threats,http://cutt.us/QREVv

• Thomas Renard, and Rik Coolseat, Returnees: who are they, why are they (not) coming back and how should we deal with them? Assessing policies on returning foreign terrorist fighters in Belgium, Germany and the Netherlands, Royal Institute for International Relations, Agmont Paper 101, February 2018. http://cutt.us/x3ysX