Morocco wants women, minors held in Iraq, Syria to come home

Turkey-backed Syrian fighters gather near a Turkish tanks at a position east of the northeastern Syrian town of Ras al-Ain, facing positions held by fighters from the Syrian Democratic Army (SDF), on October 28, 2019. (AFP)

• Morocco would “welcome” the return of male fighters, but in their case “will subject them to the law”

SALE: Morocco wants to bring home 671 Moroccan women and children linked with extremist groups who are held in Syria and Iraq, with a top investigative official saying they’re harmless.
Abdelhak Khiame, director of the Central Bureau of Judicial Investigations, said at a news conference Monday that the 280 women and 391 minors “are not terrorists” and can’t be blamed “for anything.”
Khiame said the North African kingdom also would “welcome” the return of male fighters, but in their case “will subject them to the law.”
Morocco’s top intelligence official, Boubker Sabik, said 1,659 Moroccans joined the Daesh group or other extremist organizations, and 742 of them died fighting.
Moroccan authorities dismantled a cell of Daesh loyalists on Friday who were allegedly preparing a plot to harm the economy.