MI5 chief says British militants operating in Syria

A senior UK intelligence official says hundreds of British residents have entered into operations against the Syrian government inside the country.

Andrew Parker, head of Britain’s domestic intelligence service, MI5, said on Thursday that the UK intelligence service has “seen low hundreds of people from this country go to Syria for periods and come back – some large numbers are still there – and get involved in fighting.”

The UK official made the comment during a parliamentary hearing.

“Syria has become a very attractive place for people to go… those who support or sympathize with the al-Qaeda ideological message,” Parker stated.

One in ten foreign militants operating inside Syria is reportedly from Europe. MI5 has said that up to 200 British militants are operating in the country.

In October, German news magazine Der Spiegel reported that some 200 German Takfiri militants have gathered in northern Syria in what has been dubbed the German Camp.

Syria’s Grand Mufti Sheikh Ahmad Badreddin Hassoun recently said at least 2,000 Russian citizens are cooperating with the foreign-backed militants in Syria.

In May, Syrian President Bashar al-Assad said militants from 29 different countries were operating in different parts of the country.

According to statistics compiled by the United Nations, more than 100,000 people have been killed and millions of others displaced due to the turmoil that erupted in Syria in March 2011.