
"The Russians are coming! Witness protection, please!"
Islamic State (IS, formerly ISIS/ISIL) defectors should be encouraged to desert the terror group
using promises of resettlement, protection and help, the International Centre for the Study of Radicalisation and Political Violence (ICSR) has said.
A new ICSR report, titled 'Entitled Victims, Perpetrators, Assets: the Narrative of Islamic State Defectors,' was released on Monday. It argues for the removal of legal "disincentives" to IS fighters speaking.
Governments should provide defectors with "opportunities to speak out; assist them in resettlement and ensure their safety; and remove legal disincentives that prevent them from going public," the report argues.
"It seems to me to be wrong that if someone is helping to deter people to join ISIS
by casting a negative light on the group, that he is then being punished for it," Peter Neumann, ICSR director and author of the report told the
Guardian newspaper.
"Right now, if you speak out, the prosecutor will say, 'oh that's very interesting, so he's admitting membership of ISIS, so we can prosecute him for that.' So that needs to stop," Neumann added.
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