The Combating Terrorism Center (CTC) in its analysis entitled "Western Balkans Foreign Fighters and Homegrown Jihadis: Trends and Implications" reports that since 2012, about 1,070 citizens of Kosovo, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Northern Macedonia, Albania, Serbia and Montenegro travelled to Syria and Iraq, primarily joining the Islamic State, and to a lesser extent al-Qaeda (Jabhat al Nusra, more recently rebranded as Hay'at Tahrir al-Sham - HTS).

Returning Islamic State fighters pose a threat to their countries of origin, including Western Balkan states, says a new report from an NGO dealing with global security issues.

Extremists who return after leaving our country to fight in Iraq and Syria come back with a document certifying that they went to school there.

This document is then used to avoid serving prison time in Serbia, a penalty introduced by the new legislation outlawing participation in wars abroad.

This is what chairman of the Serbian National Assembly's Committee on Control of Security Services Igor Becic told the Belgrade-based daily Politika.

Kosovo’s Interior Minister, Skender Hyseni, told a parliamentary briefing today that according to official information there are 70 active fighters from Kosovo in Syria and Iraq. “There are also 38 women and 27 children. 57 Kosovar nationals have been declared dead,” Hyseni told the parliamentary committee on internal affairs and security. Hyseni said Kosovo Police have been able to prevent 40 Kosovars from going to Syria and Iraq.