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Germany: Obstacles Hinder Prosecution of Returnees from Syria, Iraq

via Reuters
via Reuters
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Germany: Obstacles Hinder Prosecution of Returnees from Syria, Iraq

via Reuters
via Reuters

The German courts issued sentences in the case of 35 ISIS members who have returned to their country in the past years – the total number of returnees is approximately 400 which reflects the obstacles facing the authorities in the prosecution of returned terrorists.

This statistic came as an official response from the German ministry of interior on an inquiry made by the left-wing bloc on Wednesday.

The ministry of interior pointed out that the German government doesn’t have accurate information of what crimes have been committed by those who returned during their time with ISIS in Iraq and Syria.

The public prosecution managed to confirm the charges of ‘supporting terrorism’ in the case of 35 of those who returned from Syria and Iraq.

It proved that 15 members pledged allegiance to ISIS. The prosecution noted that there are ‘indicators’ that one third of the members, exceeding 1000, provided various kinds of support to the terrorist group. The public prosecution aims to collect enough evidence on the involvement, of the returnees, in ISIS crimes to present them before court.

The response of the ministry of interior revealed that the public prosecution only succeeded in few cases in proving the returnees supported terrorism, it also revealed that many of them are living freely in Germany.

The case of ISIS member Hary. S is a sample of those obstacles facing the public prosecution in proving charges – Hamburg Court issued a reduced sentence on Hary. S, 28, that doesn’t exceed three years due to his cooperation with the authorities.

Hary joined ISIS in 2014 but denied taking part in fighting and execution. Following his trial, he appeared in a video for ISIS as one of those involved in executions.

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Evacuations and Call for Aid as Typhoon Usagi Approaches Philippines

A villager on a wooden boat paddles on a flooded village caused by Typhoon Toraji in Tuguegarao city, Cagayan city, Philippines, 13 November 2024. (EPA)
A villager on a wooden boat paddles on a flooded village caused by Typhoon Toraji in Tuguegarao city, Cagayan city, Philippines, 13 November 2024. (EPA)
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Evacuations and Call for Aid as Typhoon Usagi Approaches Philippines

A villager on a wooden boat paddles on a flooded village caused by Typhoon Toraji in Tuguegarao city, Cagayan city, Philippines, 13 November 2024. (EPA)
A villager on a wooden boat paddles on a flooded village caused by Typhoon Toraji in Tuguegarao city, Cagayan city, Philippines, 13 November 2024. (EPA)

The Philippines ordered evacuations Wednesday ahead of Typhoon Usagi's arrival, as the UN's disaster office sought $32.9 million in aid for the country after recent storms killed more than 150 people.

The national weather service said Usagi -- the archipelago's fifth major storm in three weeks -- would likely make landfall Thursday in Cagayan province on the northeast tip of main island Luzon.

Provincial civil defense chief Rueli Rapsing said mayors had been ordered to evacuate residents in vulnerable areas, by force if necessary, as the 120 kilometers (75 miles) an hour typhoon bears down on the country.

"Under (emergency protocols), all the mayors must implement the forced evacuation, especially for susceptible areas," he told AFP, adding as many as 40,000 people in the province lived in hazard-prone areas.

The area is set to be soaked in "intense to torrential" rain on Thursday and Friday, which can trigger floods and landslides with the ground still sodden from recent downpours, state weather forecaster Christopher Perez told reporters.

He urged residents of coastal areas to move inland due to the threat of storm surges and giant coastal waves up to three meters (nine feet) high, with shipping also facing the peril of 8–10-meter waves.

A sixth tropical storm, Man-yi, is expected to strengthen into a typhoon before hitting the center of the country as early as Friday, Perez said.

With more than 700,000 people forced out of their homes, the successive storms have taken a toll on the resources of both the government and local households, the UN said late Tuesday.

About 210,000 of those most affected by recent flooding need support for "critical lifesaving and protection efforts over the next three months", the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs said in a statement.

"Typhoons are overlapping. As soon as communities attempt to recover from the shock, the next tropical storm is already hitting them again," UN Philippines Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator Gustavo Gonzalez said.

"In this context, the response capacity gets exhausted and budgets depleted."

The initiative "will help us mobilize the capacities and resources of the humanitarian community to better support government institutions at national, regional and local levels," Gonzalez added.

More than 28,000 people displaced by recent storms are still living in evacuation centers operated by local governments, the country's civil defense office said in its latest tally.

Government crews were still working to restore downed power and communication lines and clearing debris from roads.

About 20 big storms and typhoons hit the archipelago nation or its surrounding waters each year, killing scores of people and keeping millions in enduring poverty.

A recent study showed that storms in the Asia-Pacific region are increasingly forming closer to coastlines, intensifying more rapidly and lasting longer over land due to climate change.