Norwegian citizen charged with Syrian terror offenses

A Norwegian citizen has been charged with terror offenses allegedly committed in Syria, with the suspect’s lawyer saying the charges relate to actions committed against Syrian government forces.

Security Police spokesman Martin Bernsen said on Thursday that the 22-year-old man of Pakistani background was arrested on February 7 on his return to Oslo from Syria.

The case is the first one of its kind in the Scandinavian country.

The suspect, who was not named, has been charged under laws forbidding Norwegian citizens from supporting or joining terror groups.

Local media widely report he is being investigated in connection with terror groups linked to al-Qaeda.

The suspect’s lawyer, John Christian Elden, said on Thursday that the man was being treated in a hospital for gunshot wounds.

The Telegraph reported last month that an al-Qaeda defector and western security sources had told the paper that British people fighting in Syria were being trained as militants and then encouraged to return to the UK to launch attacks on home soil.

Syria has been gripped by deadly violence since 2011. Over 130,000 people have reportedly been killed and millions displaced due to the unrest.