Brussels strikes two fighters in Syria off population register

The City of Brussels has struck off two people who have gone to Syria to fight from the population register. A further 14 individuals suspected of doing the same are also being considered for removal from the register, said the Mayor of Brussels Yvan Mayeur on Monday evening.

Questioned in front of the municipal council by Johan Van den Driessche (N-VA) about the measures being taken by the City with regard to the problem of young Belgians taking off for combat zones in Syria, the mayor explained that they were working on shortening the amount of time that is required to have a person removed from the population register, while all the time complying with regulations.

He added that he had initiated a working group which brought together a number of local partners including NGOs working on security and prevention policies, State Security, several municipal government services and the police. The group has already met on several occasions, most recently on September 17.

The group has addressed several issues related to the Syria problem: raising awareness among staff of the various involved services, exchange of information between concerned services, the establishment of an FAQ for families and City services, the formalisation of intervention procedures in case of a suspect departure or return, and the hiring of a ‘radicalisation’ project manager.