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Man planned to sail from France to Syria with daughter, 10, to join Al-Qaeda

The Local France
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Man planned to sail from France to Syria with daughter, 10, to join Al-Qaeda
Photo: BFMTV

A man planning to set sail with his 10-year-old daughter from southern France to Syria with the aim of fighting jihad has been arrested before leaving port.

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A man arrested in the Hérault department in southern France on May 18 was about to set off to Syria in his boat to join jihadists there, BFMTV has reported.
 
The suspect had finished the preparations for his weeks-long sailing trip.
 
He had meticulously mapped out several possible routes to get there, and stocked up his boat with enough food and water to last for several weeks. 
 
He reportedly planned to take his 10-year-old daughter with him and a 21-year old man.
 
His accomplice was arrested in central France a few days later on May 26. 
 
Their plan was foiled thanks to the daughter's mother, who told the police. Both men were taken into custody. 
 
The main suspect had hoped to join fighters led by the French terrorist Omar Omsen, linked to Al-Qaeda, BFMTV said.
 
Omsen is a based near the Turkish-Syrian border and is responsible for recruiting dozens of jihadists from all over France, terrorism expert Jean-Charles Brisard told BFMTV.
 
The terrorist is a French-Senegalese former delinquent from Nice. He went to Syria in 2013. 
 
He released a new propaganda video only a few days ago.
 
 
 

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