"Most IS recruits from Balkans come from Bosnia and Kosovo"

Interior Minister Nebojsa Stefanovic says the Western Balkans represents "a significant area for recruiting members and sympathizers of Islamic State."

"Most IS recruits from Balkans come from Bosnia and Kosovo"

Interior Minister Nebojsa Stefanovic says the Western Balkans represents "a significant area for recruiting members and sympathizers of Islamic State."

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(Tanjug)

At a meeting of senior security officials held in Russia on Wednesday, Stefanovic said that a special challenge for Serbia was the complex security situation in Kosovo, due to the significant number of extremists associated with Islamic State.

"Unfortunately, the international community that has an active role in Kosovo has so far largely ignored this fact," said Stefanovic, according to a statement from the Interior Ministry.

He added that Europol data showed that around 800 terrorists from the Western Balkans had joined Islamic State in the Middle East.

Stefanovic said that recently in Serbia, a group of seven terrorists was sentenced to a cumulative sentence of 67 years in prison. They fought for Islamic State and were involved in recruiting new fighters and raising funds.

The minister said that the key segment of the fight against terrorism in Serbia was intensive and continuous cooperation with other countries and relevant international organizations.