Interpol Circulates list of IS Fighters who May Launch Attacks in Europe

A list of 173 suspected Islamic State (IS) fighters – possibly trained to launch suicide attacks in Europe – has reportedly been circulated by Interpol. The world’s largest police organizations believes that the fighters may seek to “build and position improvise explosive devices in order to cause serious deaths an injuries.”

The report includes the name of the suspects, along with the date that each fighter was recruited by the terror group, where they pray and their last known address. The Guardian is reporting that the information was collected by US intelligence agencies during assaults on IS strongholds in Iraq and Syria. The newspaper has noted however that there is no evidence to suggest that any of those listed have entered Europe and that Interpol’s list is designed to gather further information about them from European Union (EU) intelligence sources. Officials are hoping that national police forces will be able to contribute details including the suspects’ passport numbers, biometric data and details of any border crossings that they make or crimes they commit.

In a statement, an Interpol spokesperson disclosed “Interpol regularly sends alerts and updates to its National Central Bureaus (NCB) on wanted terrorists and criminals via I-24/7, our secure global police communications network.” The statement goes on to say that “it is the member country, which provides the information that decides which other countries it can be shared with,” adding “the purpose of sending these alerts and updates is to ensure that vital policing information is made available when and where it is needed.”

Last year, Sky News obtained tens of thousands of documents containing the names, addresses, telephone numbers and family contacts of IS jihadis. The files identified a number of previously unknown jihadis in the United Kingdom, as well as across northern Europe, in much of the Middle East and North Africa, and in the United States and Canada.