CRS INSIGHT
European Security, and Islamist Terrorism, and Returning
Fighters
November 16, 2015
March 29, 2016 (IN10209)
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Related Authors
Kristin Archick
Paul Belkin
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Kristin Archick, Specialist in European Affairs (karchick@crs.loc.gov, 7-2668)
Paul Belkin, Analyst in European Affairs (pbelkin@crs.loc.gov, 7-0220)
Terrorist Attacks in FranceEurope and Mounting Security Concerns
On November 13, 2015March 22, 2016, coordinated terrorist attacks in Parisbombings in Brussels, Belgium, left at least 129 people dead and over 350 injured at six
locations throughout the city. French President François Hollande attributed the attacks to the Islamic State terrorist
organization (which subsequently claimed responsibility), and asserted that France's response would be "merciless."
The attacks were the worst-ever terrorist incident on French soil, and the latest in a number of examples of Islamist
terrorism in France and Europe over the past year and a half. (Also see CRS Insight IN10301, France: Efforts to
Counter Islamist Terrorism and Radicalization.)
These attacks have reinforced European concerns about European citizens training and fighting with extremist groups in
foreign conflicts (especially in Syria and Iraq) and heightened fears that terrorists could slip into Europe as part of an
ongoing influx of migrants and refugees. News reports indicate that one of the seven assailants killed during the attacks
may have entered Europe through Greece in early October with a Syrian passport as part of the refugee flows
(authorities have not conclusively made this link); at least two suspects—both French nationals—may have traveled to
Syria. While evidence suggests that the Islamic State was directly involved in planning and carrying out these attacks,
worries also persist about "homegrown" extremists inspired by Islamist propaganda to commit violence at home
without ever traveling abroad. Other recent terrorist incidents in Europe include:
The May 2014 killing of four people at the Jewish Museum in Brussels, Belgium; the suspect is a French Muslim
who reportedly spent a year with Islamist fighters in Syria.
The January 2015 attacks in Paris in which gunmen killed 17 people in three related incidents that targeted the
satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo, police officers, and a kosher supermarket. The perpetrators of the attacks were
French-born Muslims, with possible ties to Al Qaeda in Yemen or the Islamic State.
The February 2015 shootings in Copenhagen, Denmark, in which a self-radicalized Danish-born citizen of
Palestinian descent murdered two individuals—one at a cafe that had been hosting a free speech debate, another
at a synagogue—and wounded five police officers.
The attempted August 2015 attack on a train traveling from Amsterdam to Paris that was thwarted by six
passengers, including three Americans; the suspect is a Moroccan man who may have traveled to Syria.
Although it is difficult to assess the precise number of Muslims from Europe who have joined extremist groups in Syria
and Iraq, their ranks have increased significantly over the past two years. European Union (EU) officials suggest that at
least 3,000 and upward of 5,000 EU citizens have left to fight in Syria, Iraq, or other conflict zones. Key countries of
origin reportedly include Belgium, Denmark, France, Germany, the Netherlands, Spain, Sweden, and the United
Kingdom. The conflict in Syria and Iraq has also attracted fighters from Russia and the Western Balkans. (For more
information, see CRS Report R44003, European Fighters in Syria and Iraq: Assessments, Responses, and Issues for the
United States.)
European Responses and Challenges
European governments have employed a range of measures to combat Islamist extremism and the foreign fighter threat,
including increasing surveillance, prohibiting travel, and arresting returning fighters and terrorism recruiters. Several
European countries have bolstered their counterterrorism laws and enacted measures to ensure they can prosecute those
who travel or attempt to travel abroad for terrorist purposes, as required by U.N. Security Council Resolution 2178 of
September 201435 people dead and more than 300 injured
at the city's international airport and a downtown metro station near the headquarters of the European Union (EU). Four
Americans were killed and a dozen injured. Belgian officials declared the bombings acts of terrorism, and the Islamic
State organization claimed responsibility. The bombings follow the March 18 capture in Brussels of Salah Abdeslam,
who is believed to have been directly involved in the November 13, 2015, terrorist attacks in Paris that killed 130
people. Authorities have linked Abdeslam to the three identified Brussels suicide bombers, including Najim
Laachraoui, who may have constructed the explosive devices used in both the Brussels and Paris attacks.
These incidents are the latest in a number of Islamist terrorist attacks in Europe. Over the past two years, many attacks
and thwarted plots appear connected to the Islamic State and were perpetrated by European citizens of Muslim
background who have trained or fought in Syria and Iraq. European officials estimate that up to 5,000 European
citizens have traveled to fight in Syria, Iraq, and other conflicts abroad. The suspect in the May 2014 killing of four
people at the Jewish Museum in Brussels is a French citizen who reportedly spent a year with Islamist fighters in Syria.
The perpetrators of three related attacks in Paris in January 2015 in which 17 people were murdered (including at
satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo) were French-born Muslims, with possible ties to the Islamic State or Al Qaeda in
Yemen. All of the identified perpetrators of the November 2015 Paris attacks were French or Belgian citizens, and at
least six appear to have fought with the Islamic State. Laachraoui, the suspected Belgian bomb expert, may have trained
in Syria, and Turkey deported one of the Brussels suicide bombers to the Netherlands last summer after arresting him
near its border with Syria. (Also see CRS Report R44003, European Fighters in Syria and Iraq: Assessments,
Responses, and Issues for the United States.)
French and EU authorities warn that the Islamic State's ability to direct and/or carry out operations in Europe appears to
be increasing. Reports suggest that the individuals involved in the Paris and Brussels attacks may have relied on larger
networks of accomplices and supporters to carry out the attacks and evade security services. Following the Brussels
attacks, French police foiled another terrorist plot and several suspects were arrested on terrorism charges in Belgium,
Germany, Italy, and the Netherlands. The uptick in terrorist activity has reinforced long-standing concerns about the
integration of Muslims in Europe and the potential for radicalization among some segments of Europe's Muslim
populations. Worries also persist about attacks by self-radicalized individuals who may not have traveled abroad but
have been inspired by Islamist extremist propaganda, such as the Danish gunman who killed two individuals in
Copenhagen in February 2015.
Many of the recent attacks have exposed weaknesses in European domestic security, intelligence-sharing, and border
controls. Some officials and analysts are concerned that terrorists could slip into Europe as part of the ongoing migrant
and refugee flows. At least two of the November 2015 Paris assailants may have entered Europe through Greece in
early October by posing as refugees with fake Syrian passports. At the same time, EU officials caution against linking
refugees with terrorism.
European Responses and Challenges
European governments have employed a range of measures to combat Islamist terrorism and the so-called foreign
fighter phenomenon, including increasing surveillance, prohibiting travel, and arresting returning fighters and terrorism
recruiters. Some countries have bolstered existing counterterrorism laws, especially to ensure that individuals who
travel abroad for terrorist purposes may be prosecuted (as required by U.N. Security Council Resolution 2178 of
September 2014). European officials are also working to more aggressively counter radicalization and extremist
propaganda, especially via the Internet and social media. Some have called on U.S. technology companies to assist
these efforts by preemptively removing terrorist content from their sites.
France, which is home to Europe's largest Muslim population (about 5-6 million) and the source of the largest number
of European fighters in Syria and Iraq, has been at the forefront of European
efforts to counter the threat posed by
Islamist militants. French officials estimate that over 500 French nationals are currently fighting in Syria and Iraq
(although the total number who have traveled to fight or perished may be triple that); they believe roughly 2,000 French
citizens Islamist militants. Recent estimates indicate that up to 1,600 French nationals
have traveled to fight in Syria and Iraq and roughly 2,000 people are involved in Muslim extremist cells in France and 3,800 show signs of Islamist radicalization. Over the past
year, the government has taken steps to strengthen.
French counterterrorism policies alreadyare considered some ofto be among the most
stringent in Europe. These have included imposingIn the past year, the
government has imposed travel bans on individuals suspected of seeking terrorist training
abroad, blocking websites and prohibiting speech that encourage abroad, prohibited speech
that encourages terrorism, and significantly enhancingenhanced the state's
surveillance authorities.
Nevertheless, stemming the flow of European fighters to Syria and Iraq and keeping track of those who go and return
remain challenging. Prosecuting individuals preemptively is often problematic without strong evidence that a suspect
has actually engaged in terrorism abroad or has returned to commit a terrorist act. Even governments such as France's
with far-reaching legal authorities have encountered difficulties monitoring a growing number of potential assailants
amid budgetary and personnel resource constraints. French authorities had previously questioned the suspects in the
Brussels shooting and the January attacks in Paris, but surveillance was lifted before the incidents; at least some of the
suspects in the November attacks were known to security services in France and Belgium.
Analysts assert that more must also be done at the EU level given the Schengen system of largely open internal borders
(which permit individuals to travel without passport checks among most European countries). Both the thwarted train
assailant and the alleged Brussels gunman appear to have traveled between several European countries prior to the
attacks. Belgium has arrested at least seven individuals possibly connected to the November attacks, while a suspected
"8th attacker" reportedly entered Belgium from France the morning after and remains at large.
Over the last two years, the EU has sought to enhance information-sharing among national and EU authorities,
strengthen external border controls, and improve existing counter-radicalization efforts, particularly online. However,
implementation of some initiatives has been slowed by national sovereignty concerns, law enforcement barriers to
sharing sensitive information, and civil liberty protections. Work also continues on finalizing a long-standing proposal
for an EU-wide system for the collection of airline Passenger Name Record (PNR) data. In July 2015, the European
Parliament's civil liberties committee endorsed a revised PNR proposal, but it must still be approved by the full
Parliament and EU governments. Critics contend that the envisioned system infringes too much on data privacy rights
and does not go far enough in ensuring that PNR data is meaningfully shared.
The November attacks in Paris will put further pressure on the EU's borders and efforts to manage the ongoing
migration and refugee crisis. After the attacks, France instituted temporary border controls, which follow those imposed
by other Schengen countries over the last two months because of the migrant and refugee flows. While EU officials
caution against linking refugees with terrorism, the attacks could increase anti-immigrant sentiments and threaten
previously-agreed EU policies, including controversial plans to relocate some asylum-seekers from Italy and Greece to
other EU countries (see CRS In Focus IF10259, Europe's Migration and Refugee Crisis).
Issues for the United States
President Obama strongly condemned the most recent terrorist attacks on Paris and asserted that the United States will
work with France and other countries to "bring these terrorists to justice." The attacks may raise additional questions
about U.S.-led military efforts to counter the Islamic State in Syria and Iraq. Among other issues, some Members of
Congress remain concerned that Europeans fighting with Islamist extremist groups abroad could enter the United States
under the U.S. Visa Waiver Program (VWP), which allows short-term, visa-free travel for citizens of most European
countries (see CRS Report RL32221, Visa Waiver Program). Some Members of Congress and other U.S. politicians
also worry that violent extremists could gain entry not only to Europe but potentially to the United States by posing as
refugees. U.S. policymakers underscore the importance of maintaining close U.S.-EU counterterrorism cooperation in
light of the Islamist terrorist threat and the foreign fighter phenomenon (see CRS Report RS22030, U.S.-EU
(For more information, see
CRS Insight IN10301, France: Efforts to Counter Islamist Terrorism and the Islamic State.)
Belgium has also come under scrutiny. Belgium has the highest number of foreign fighters per capita of any European
country (possibly as many as 550 out of a total population of roughly 11 million) and what some describe as a "welldeveloped underground jihadist pipeline." Over the past year, authorities have disrupted several terrorist plots, including
a planned attack in January 2015 in Verviers (in eastern Belgium). In late 2015, the government proposed new
measures to strengthen law enforcement capabilities against terrorism and better tackle extremism, including shutting
down hate-preaching websites and monitoring radicalized youth (potentially through the use of electronic tags).
Additionally, Belgian officials pledged to "clean up Molenbeek," the Brussels district that is home to dozens of
suspected Islamist militants.
Despite some progress, European authorities have encountered difficulties stemming the flow of fighters to Syria and
Iraq and monitoring a growing number of potential assailants amid budgetary and personnel constraints. At least some
of the suspects in a number of attacks were previously known to European security services. Law enforcement and
intelligence capacities also vary across Europe. Many observers view the fact that it took Belgian services four months
to find Abdeslam as indicative of serious shortcomings in Belgian counterterrorism policies. On the other hand, even
France's widely praised counterterrorism apparatus has struggled to prevent attacks, and some experts suggest that
increasingly tough policies targeting Muslims could further alienate them, exacerbating the potential for radicalization.
Critics argue that efforts to integrate Muslims in Belgium and France have been largely unsuccessful.
Analysts assert that more must be done at the EU level given the Schengen system, which largely permits individuals to
travel without passport checks among most European countries. The EU has sought to enhance information-sharing
among national and EU authorities, strengthen external border controls, and improve counter-radicalization efforts,
particularly online and in prisons. However, implementation of some initiatives has been slowed by national
sovereignty concerns, law enforcement barriers to sharing sensitive information, and civil liberty protections. In
December 2015, the EU reached provisional agreement on a controversial proposal for the EU-wide collection of
airline Passenger Name Record (PNR) data. Critics have long contended that the envisioned system infringes too much
on privacy rights and does not go far enough in ensuring that PNR data is meaningfully shared. Data protection
concerns have reportedly continued to delay final approval of the EU PNR system.
Issues for the United States
President Obama strongly condemned the terrorist attacks in Brussels and asserted U.S. support for Belgium, the EU,
and NATO (which is also headquartered in Brussels). The attacks may raise additional questions in Congress about
U.S.-led military efforts to counter the Islamic State in Syria and Iraq, and they may prompt further scrutiny of airport
security. Some Members of Congress remain concerned that Europeans fighting with Islamist extremist groups abroad
could enter the United States under the U.S. Visa Waiver Program, which allows short-term, visa-free travel for citizens
of most European countries (see CRS Report RL32221, Visa Waiver Program). U.S. policymakers underscore the
importance of maintaining close U.S.-EU counterterrorism cooperation in light of the Islamist terrorist threat and the
foreign fighter phenomenon (see CRS Report RS22030, U.S.-EU Cooperation Against Terrorism).