Jihadist Recruitment Centers Operating From Ljubljana to Tetovo

There are more than 100 Jihadist Recruitment Center operating in the Balkans, most of them in Bosnia-Herzegovina, main Serbian online newspaper Blic wrote.

In addition to Bosnia-Herzegovina, where there are about 64 jihadist training camps, most such cells and recruitment centers are to be found also in Macedonia and Kosovo.

The main Serbian jihadist recruitment stronghold is in Novi Pazar and its environs.

Big Islamist strongholds are to be found in Sjenica, Novi Pazar, Presevo, Bujanovac, and Medvedja.

The two most dangerous recruitment centers in the Balkans are located in Sarajevo and Zenica.

Bosnia-Herzegovina Police listed the village of Podgredina as one of the "most dangerous Wahhabi training spots."

Local people said at the time that they were against Wahhabi's coming to their village.

"The building of this house up in the hill where they worship was financed by some man in Austria and that is where they now congregate. On holidays, there are up to 30 cars up there," one of the local people said.

One of the most notorious Wahhabi strongholds is Gornja Maoca, that is in Bosnia-Herzegovina, where the flag of the Islamic State was even raised at one time.

Jihadist recruitment and training centers have reportedly been discovered also in the environs of Ljubljana in Slovenia, in Rijeka and Split in Croatia, in Gusinje, Plav, and Ulcinj in Montenegro, and in Kumanovo and Tetovo in Macedonia.

Last summer, Novi Pazar's Furqan place of worship (mesjid) was identified as a place where radical Islam was being preached. Serbian security services said at the time that this was not a center where fighters were being recruited for the war in Syria but that through it one could establish contract with the fighters.

Kosovo Intelligence and Police Arrest ISIL linked Group Plotting Terrorist Attacks in the Balkans

Under the supervision of the Kosovo Intelligence Agency [KIA], the Special Prosecution of Kosovo, and some international Intelligence Services, the Kosovo police have arrested 19 ISIL "soldiers" of Lavdrim Muhaxheri, who were coordinated focused to carry out terrorist attacks in the Balkans, but firstly in Kosovo and specifically in Albania, were the Albania-Israel soccer match for the 2018 World Cup qualifications was played.

According Albanian newspaper Zeri the first group of the arrested persons -- Bujar Brahimi, Visar Ibishi, Liriodon Morina, Burim Istrefi, Leutrim Musliu, Kenan Plakaj, and Leotrim Vojvoda -- have been accused by the Special Prosecution of Kosovo of plotting terrorist attacks. It is suspected that all of them are part of the ISIL terrorist group. They had planned to carry out terrorist attacks initially in Kosovo and then in other Balkan countries.

Special Prosecution of Kosovo said that "there is convincing evidence that the defendants, Bujar Brahimi, Visar Ibishi, Liriodon Morina, Burim Istrefi, Leutrim Musliu, Kenan Plakaj, and Leotrim Vojvoda belong to the ISIL terrorist organization. Instructed by former leader of the Albanians in Syria, Lavdrim Muhaxheri, defendant Bujar Brahimi was willingly involved in terrorist activities of that organization during the period September-October 2016".

"Kosovo Intelligence Agency  arrested 19 ISIL soldiers linked to Lavdrim Muhaxheri"

Special Prosecution of Kosovo added that "they are suspected of having planned terrorist attacks, initially in Kosovo and then in other countries of the Balkans. They planned attacks on various facilities, including security institutions, with the aim of causing serious fear among the population, destabilization and destruction of basic political, constitutional, economic, and social structures in different countries, and then to establish in their territories the so-called ISIL (Islamic State of Iraq and Levant)".

Security experts have said that the fact that the number of arrested people on suspicion of planning terrorist attacks is so big in this case should serve as a wake-up call to the security institutions to cope with serious terrorism threats.

According to Behar Selimi, former director of the Kosovo Police, "if the security institutions' claims that we were dealing with a planned terrorist attack are corroborated, this means Kosovo is not facing a minor threat but rather a direct national security threat against the institutions and the citizens in general. So if the charges that we have seen about an ISIL cell in Kosovo will be confirmed during an investigation process, it is obvious that we are dealing with something serious".

Kosovar Irfan Haqifi Suspected to join ISIL

Albanian language newspaper Koha Ditore reported that “Irfan Haqifi, a kosovar citizen under house arrest, left Kosovo on 15 July and is suspected of having joined ISIL”. He managed to go to the conflict area from a third country during that period of time.

Irfan Haqifi is the brother of Ridvan Haqifi, one of the main commanders of Albanians in Syria, alongside Lavderim Muhaxheri, who only one month earlier threatened the Balkans that he would take vengeance against those "who humiliated the Muslims in Kosovo, Albania, Macedonia, and Bosnia-Herzegovina".

Another Kosovar citizens, Betim Ibrahimaj, suspected for terrorism, also managed to escape from house arrest and is suspected of being in the armed conflict zone in Syria.

In addition to Irfan Haqifi and Betim Ibrahimaj, also Egzon Iseni and Rron Emini left Kosovo, while it is not known when exactly Amir Vuniqi fled the Country.

Both Irfan Haqifi and Betim Ibrahimaj left the territory of Kosovo illegally, but the Kosovo Police have no information about the entry-exit registration system and have not proved whether the same managed to penetrate in the conflict zone in Syria or Iraq.

According to security experts, Haqifi's and Ibrahimaj's escape from house arrest proves the justice system's lack of seriousness in treating terrorism cases.

Florian Qehaja from the Kosovar Center for Security Studies said that the court's and prosecution's experience in dealing with these issues was almost inexistent or very limited.

Last May The New York Times published "How Kosovo Was Turned Into Fertile Ground for ISIS" on how "extremist clerics and secretive associations funded by Saudis and others have transformed a once-tolerant Muslim society into a font of extremism".

Balkan Think Tank: Balkans Policy Research Group

The same researchers who used to work for the now closed International Crisis Group’s Balkans and Kosovo projects established the Prishtina-based Balkans Policy Research Group (BPRG) in 2016.

While the ICG’s legacy is fully acknowledged, the BPRG staff stresses the differences between the two think tanks, with the latter focusing on research and policy recommendations on peacebuilding and statebuilding in Kosovo, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Macedonia, Albania and Serbia.

BPRG stiles itself as a non-governmental, non-profit think tank whose funds are provided by the governments of Norway, Switzerland and Finland.

Balkan Think Tanks: Albanian Institute for International Studies (AIIS)

The Albanian Institute for International Studies (AIIS) is a non-governmental, non-profit research centre focusing mostly on the functioning of democratic institutions in Albania, Tirana’s EU perspectives and its relations with Kosovo and Serbia.

As an apparently non-profit entity, AIIS totally relies on a conspicuous number of international donors: US, Germany, France, Spain, UK, the European Commission, the Balkan Trust for Democracy, the National Endowment for Democracy, the Open Society Foundation, UNDP and NATO.

Balkan Think Tanks: The Belgrade Centre for Security Policy

The Belgrade Centre for Security Policy (BCSP) was founded in 1997 as the Centre for Civil-Military Relations.

It advocates “human, national, regional and international security based on democracy and respect for human rights” while supporting “the consolidation of security sector reform and integration of Western Balkan countries into the Euro Atlantic community”.

Assessment and reform of security legislation and institutions within Serbia, regional cooperation among security agencies in the Balkans, the country’s accession to EU and NATO and support for the Serbia-Kosovo dialogue are among the issues and activities dealt by the BCSP.

The Think Tank is mostly funded by Western donors, such as the Norwegian government and the Open Society Institute.

Macedonian Intelligence Aims to Portray Albanians as ISIL Fighters

According Macedonian newspaper Zhurnal "Macedonian Intelligence elements, supported from Russian and Serb, aim to portray Macedonian and Kosovar Albanians the attributes of ISIL fighters, denigrating and degrading political credibility of Macedonian and Kosovar Albanians".

Zhurnal reported that "this disinformation comes from Macedonian and Russian Intelligence Agencies with the target to smear Albanians as being affiliated with ISIL".

In this context President Ivanov stated that "Macedonia had been facing a danger of potential terrorist attacks that could likely be conducted by recruitees and those who had returned from Syria and Iraq. In our country, there are as many as 86 people who have returned from the wars of Syria and Iraq".

Albanian Defense Minister Luan Hajdaraga said that "a lot of Balkan Intelligence, media and think tanks spread rumors or information that has still not been confirmed. This type of information needs to be verified first".