Faizel Patel, Radio Islam News, 2015-05-08

The Iraqi Embassy in South Africa on Thursday said concerns regarding South Africans being recruited by the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (Isis) had been raised before, and the threat should have been taken seriously.

On Wednesday, State security Minister David Mahlobo said the cases of two Cape Town teenagers who tried to join the Islamic state were not the only ones that they’ve dealt with.

Iraqi Ambassador to South Africa Dr Hisham Al-Alawi said the younger generation needed to be educated about terror groups.

“It’s very important that especially the young generation are well educated about what those groups represent. The fact that their leaders are not qualified to talk in the name of Islam, that they are not justified to abuse Muslims and non-Muslims in the way they have been doing in various parts of the world.”
He said a collective effort was needed to tackle Isis recruiting South Africans.

“We certainly need to have cooperation between government, various government departments and also non-government entities including community leaders, scholars and media.”

Al Alawi said Isis had been using cyber space and social media networks in an effective way to recruit South Africans. – EWN

(Twitter: @Faizie143)