Wolfsburg family that fought alongside Daesh receives social benefits from Germany


A German family that fought alongside Daesh in Syria has been receiving social benefits from the German government for over a year, as reported by the German newspaper Braunschweiger Zeitung.

The family from northern Germany's Wolfsburg had two children and reportedly received childcare and unemployment allowances, which was paid to the grandfather. Earlier in February 2016, some 19,200 euros was recovered in a raid at the house.

The members of the family left Germany in Autumn 2014 and there have been no reports since on whether the couple and their 2013 born twins were still alive.

Wolfsburg has lately come to spotlight for its wave of radicalized youth leaving Germany to fight alongside Daesh in Syria and Iraq. The report claims that at least 82 radicalized individuals have traveled to Syria and Iraq, 33 of whom have returned to Germany.

Homegrown militants have become a major threat for many European countries after recent attacks and security threats posed by the Daesh-linked homegrown terrorists drew much attention all over Europe.

Meanwhile, a recently-surfaced audio message, reportedly from a Daesh spokesperson, has called on its followers to launch attacks on the U.S., Europe, Russia, Australia, Iraq, Syria, Iran, and the Philippines during the Islamic holy month of Ramadan, which began late May.

The audio clip was distributed on Monday through a Daesh channel on Telegram, an encrypted messaging application. It was attributed to the militant group's official Spokesperson, Abi al-Hassan al-Muhajer.

"O lions of Mosul, Raqqa, and Tal Afar, God bless those pure arms and bright faces, charge against the rejectionists and the apostates and fight them with the strength of one man," said al-Muhajer in the message. Rejectionist is a derogatory term used to refer to Shi'ite Muslims.

The message goes on to add, "To the brethren of faith and belief in Europe, America, Russia, Australia, and others, your brothers in your land have done well so take them as role models and do as they have done."