Bulgarians Begin Trial For IS-linked Syrian Refugees

On August 2nd, the trial for three Syrian migrants in Bulgaria began following their arrest on February 8th in Svilengrad.

According to the prosecution, the three young men: Almohammad Abdulhamid, Al Abdahah Fadi and Al Fahdi Yassim, all were caught on thermal camera illegally attempting to gain entry into Turkey through Bulgaria, allegedly in an attempt to join Islamic State.

The individuals, aged 20, 22, and 25 had previously been granted refugee status in Germany before they attempted their exodus to Turkey in February of 2016. The three refugees then attempted to leave Europe by way of Greece and into Turkey. The Syrian natives then attempted to illegally cross the borders of southern Bulgaria, but were captured by Border Police.

Upon their arrest and detainment, Border officers uncovered a large number of photos of individuals believed to be Islamic State and prominent Muslim Brotherhood leaders on the refugees’ cellphones. Following the discovery of suspicious evidence, the three faced additional terrorism charges along their border crime.

Border Police and the prosecution believe that Adbulhamid, Fadi, and Yassim intended on reaching Syria in order to coordinate and offer aid to the Islamic State terror group. If convicted, the three men could face a maximum ten-year prison sentence.

As of July 27th, a spokesman for the prosecution noted that this is the first case of its kind in Bulgaria and that the primary evidence against the Syrians are their phones that not only contain pictures, but also contain communications with individuals linked to the Muslim Brotherhood and Islamic State. Among the text messages are inferences to “dying for a cause” .

In addition to evidence from the refugees’ phones, the prosecution has obtained eight key witnesses willing to testify against the men and their intent on taking up arms with Islamic State. One of these witnesses’ identities has not been released because he/she is thought to have worked with the defendants in their attempt to return to their home country for the caliphate.

Questions remain regarding what association the three men had with Islamic State or Muslim Brotherhood figures; however, the three men have plead not guilty and claim the messages were taken out of context.he three men gave statements claiming the messages were taken out of context.

The Muslim Brotherhood and other proponents of jihadist movements have a long history in Germany.

Since the end of the Second World War, the Muslim Brotherhood based out of Munich has been the focal point of European operations for the group. The Munich MB has had numerous ties to funding terrorist organizations such as Hamas and al-Qaeda and has helped spread Islamist ideals across Europe.

While we do not know the specific identify of the Muslim Brotherhood individuals the men were reported to have contact with, their time spent as refugees in Germany may raise questions about  collusion with Brotherhood figures in supporting the recruitment or movement of potential fighters to Syria.