Home » World » Islamists from Germany campaign for donations | TIME ONLINE

Islamists from Germany campaign for donations | TIME ONLINE

In the competitive province of Idlib in northwestern Syria there are said to be more than 60 Islamists from Germany. Have this Research of the Südwestrundfunk (SWR) and the ARD studio Cairo result. Chat protocols show that the Islamists are working with, among others, the former Al Qaeda branch Hajat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS).

In messenger services like Telegram, they carried out propaganda for the so-called jihad in Syria, Accordingly, a man who calls himself Abu Fatima is supposed to report in German on the advance of the Assad regime. For example, he writes: “Because of the current situation, I will no longer have time for the canal. The great war has started, it is all about.”

Propaganda videos also solicit donations from Germany. In private voice messages that were sent to Germany, the SWR described in detail how these donations should get to Syria. The money should either be sent to a contact person in Istanbul via Western Union or to London via so-called Bitcoin machines. “There I have a brother pick it up and send it to me personally (…) It’s inschallah safe and anonymous,” says a voice message that was only sent a few days ago.

According to the report, German security authorities are aware of this donation practice. The Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution said he had knowledge of online actors close to German-speaking al-Qaeda who regularly called for emigration to Syria and financial support for jihad. Those who cannot leave the country themselves are encouraged to provide financial support for jihad.

Cryptocurrencies used to finance terrorism

The Federal Criminal Police Office has been observing cryptocurrencies in the context of terrorist financing “intensively for a long time,” it says. Cryptocurrencies generally “had an increased risk of being used not only for money laundering but also for terrorist financing purposes due to their high degree of anonymity”.

Among the Islamists from Germany who are in the room Idlib have joined militant groups, according to SWR, should also be Tolga D. It used to belong to the so-called Sauerland Group. In 2007 he was arrested for an illegal border crossing in Pakistan and deported to Germany. At the time, the authorities assumed that he had wanted to join the Al Qaeda terrorist group.

Insurgents still control Idlib. Islamists have been ousted in all other parts of Syria. Syrian ruler Bashar al-Assad is determined to bring this region back under his control. Its main ally is Russia, while Turkey supports the rebels in the conflict. Because of the escalating situation the United Nations has again called for a ceasefire,

– ,

Leave a Comment

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.