Fewer Belgians travel to fight for Islamic State

The number or Belgian residents leaving the country to fight with Islamic State in Iraq or Syria has fallen sharply, according to figures reported in Le Soir. At most, five people each month are making the journey, compared to around 12 a month at the end of 2014.

The figures, which must be treated with caution, come from reports of disappearances, information from families and surveillance of social networks. They show that the number of Belgians at the front has risen from around 165 in March 2014 to around 260 at present.

Belgium was one of the first European countries to realise that radicalised young men and women were leaving to fight for Islamic State. Not only did the government start collecting statistics on the departures, but cities such as Antwerp and Vilvorde started campaigns to dissuade locals from joining the fight. These efforts are now bearing fruit, the paper says.

However the issue of returning fighters must also be taken into account, with the statistics showing that 160 former combatants may now be in the country. "The fact that they have returned and are no longer actively fighting can be seen as a positive indicator," the paper says, "but this is offset by the advanced military training given to fighters, which increases the need for returnees to be monitored."

Photo © Medyan Dairieh/ZUMA Press/Corbis