12 to 15 Indians fought alongside IS against Iraqi forces, says Ambassador
01:12PM Wed 19 Jul, 2017
At least 12 to 15 Indians recently fought alongside the Islamic State (IS) against Iraqi security forces, Iraqi envoy to India Fakhri H. Al Issa told journalists on Wednesday on the occasion of the commemoration of the victory of the Iraqi forces against the IS in the city of Mosul.
Some of the Indians who fought in Iraq might have returned home. “We know that at least 12 to 15 Indians were among the large number of foreign fighters who fought against our security forces during the ongoing operations in Iraq. Foreign fighters came from different parts of the world, including China, Japan, North and East Africa to fight in Iraq. We do not know what really happened subsequently to the Indians, but our information is that that (sic) is the total number of Indians in IS,” said Mr. Al Issa at the Embassy of Iraq.
Foreign fighters often were killed and many managed to escape. “We feel that some of the Indian fighters might have escaped and returned home in the way many foreign fighters returned home in Europe,” he said.