Andrew Parker, head of domestic intelligence service MI5, told a parliamentary hearing the conflict was attracting al-Qaeda UK sympathisers. Their interaction with militant groups abroad was a very important strand of the threat the UK faced, he said. One in 10 foreign militants in Syria is believed to be from Europe. Most of them come from Saudi Arabia, Tunisia and Libya. MI5 has previously said that up to 200 British fighters are in Syria. Last month, BBC News learnt that a group of 20 young men from the UK were fighting against forces allied to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad on the Turkish border.
Posted on: Sun, 10 Nov 2013 06:55:11 +0000