NOS News•today, 5:07 PM
Two Dutch women suspected of terrorism have been transferred from Syria to the Netherlands with their two children. This is what the outgoing ministers Yeşilgöz (Justice and Security) and Bruins Slot (Foreign Affairs) wrote to the House of Representatives.
With the help of the United States, the four were brought to the Netherlands. After arrival, the two women were arrested. Their children have been handed over to the Child Protection Council. No further information is being provided about the identity of the women, when they left for Syria and what exactly they are suspected of.
The US State Department also issued a press statement about the operation. In addition to the Dutch suspects, eleven American citizens have also been retrieved, the largest number to date, according to the US. Six Canadian citizens and one Finnish citizen were also picked up.
The US estimates that around 30,000 people from sixty countries are living in the Al-Hol and Al-Roj refugee camps, mainly children.
Travellers
According to the AIVD intelligence service, around 300 people from the Netherlands have traveled to Syria and Iraq since 2012. Among them are about a hundred women.
They are said to have joined jihadist groups there, mainly Islamic State. The majority have now returned or died.
