02/08/2013
Latest incidents in the Netherlands linked to the issue of a 19-year-old woman, referred by medias as Oum Usama, arrested on July 17 in Zoetermeer by the Dutch police for having recruited individuals for the Jihad in Syria have drawn particular attention in the Netherland medias.
A massive online campaign has been launched on numerous jihadist websites to demand the release of Oum Usama. The Dutch facebook group “Vreiheid voor Usama” (Liberty for Usama) announced its intention to hold a demonstration on August 1 in The Hague. The demonstration was finally cancelled on July 31 after a statement of the public prosecutor in The Hague claiming that Oum Usama would be freed on August 2. According to the prosecution, there is no further element for a longer pre-trial detention.
The regional Office of Criminal Investigation Unit in The Hague started an investigation under the direction of the prosecutor about radical Islamists suspected to have recruited people for Jihad in Syria. The investigation is still in progress. Although Oum Usama will be freed, she still remains involved in the case.
The Islamist activists calling on Facebook for the liberation of Oum Usama claimed in a press release that they take into account the statement of the Public Ministry but also that they will not give up campaigning until Oum Usama is freed.
To recall, a rally in support of Oum Usama was already organized by Islamist group Global Tawheed in front of the Dutch Embassy in London on July 27. According to Dutch media, the rally was also attended by members of radical Islamist movement “Sharia4Holland”. The Dutch ambassador in London did not give any official comment in reaction to this demonstration. Rallies in France and Germany were also organized in support of Oum Usama.
Another 24-years-old Dutch man called Mohammed G. was also arrested in November 2012 with a ticket to reach the Turkish border. The man allegedly intended to join Islamist camps in Syria. He was expected to make a first stopover in Brussels. The Dutch daily De Volkskrant reported that the criminal investigators found knifes, farewell letters and Jihadist propaganda on the suspect during his arrest.
Mohammed G. was expected to come in court in Rotterdam on July 31. According to the suspect’s lawyers, having the intention to reach the Syrian conflict area does not mean that their client planned to commit terrorist attacks. According to the prosecution, recorded phone calls obviously proove that the suspected Jihadist planned to join Al- Qaeda affiliate in Syria, Al-Nusra Front. He also recently married a Muslim woman he met on Internet, in his comments on Internet Mohammed G. expressed his wish to die with her as a martyr.
The info website DutchNews.nl previously reported that the Dutch intelligence services (AIVD) helped the police to stop on May 17 a 16-years-old girl leaving the Netherlands to fight in Syria. Her arrest happened while the security service was carrying an investigation into people actively recruiting youngsters to join the struggle in Syria. The Dutch NOS television reported on March 11, quoting the Dutch counter terrorism agency NCTV (National Coordinator for Counterterrorism and security), that 100 Dutch Islamists were currently fighting in Syria, Afghanistan and Somalia.
The daily De Volkskrant reported on April 18 that the parents of several Dutch youths recruited for Jihad complained to the police in The Hague about two recruiters who approached their children. In this respect, three complaints have been made against a man called Murat Ö or Ibrahim the Turk and three others against a man known as Aboe Moussa. The suspect has been indentified for being active in the radical movement Behind Bars. To recall, Islamist movement Behind Bars was already implicated in the organization of pro-Islamist rallies in the Netherlands over the last years.
The Dutch AIVD intelligence service 2012 annual report identified three main Islamists groups in The Netherlands: Sharia4Holland, Street Dawah and Behind Bars. Despite differences in opinion between these movements, they are all commonly working in anti-democratic activities and preach jihadist beliefs.
– Sharia4Holland is a radical Islamist Dutch movement whose goal is to establish the Sharia in the Netherlands. The AIVD has constantly monitored this movement as it is leading an active Islamist propaganda. AIVD previous investigations reported that Sharia4Holland was already carrying recruitment for jihad in Syria in 2012.
– Street Dawah is famous worldwide for having local groups in numerous countries. Their official goal is to spread the message of islam in the world. The da’wa means in Arabic an invitation to non-muslims to listen to the message of islam.
– Behind Bars is known as an international radical Islamist group that heads a local branch in The Netherlands. Behind Bars Dutch branch took part in 2012 in a demonstration in Amsterdam against the film “Innocence of Muslims”. The 2012 AIVD annual report claimed that Behind Bars has been acting recruitments for Syrian jihad in the Netherlands.
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