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Five Kosovars Jailed For Preparing Pro-Islamic State Video


A Pristina court has jailed five people for planning to disseminate propaganda on behalf of the Islamic State (IS) extremist group.

The five men were handed sentences ranging from four to 13 years for preparing to make a propagandist video pledging allegiance to IS, the court said on July 18.

The goal of the defendants was "to publish this video on the Internet, showing the world the extent of the so-called Islamic State in the Republic of Kosovo," it said.

The convicted men were arrested in July 2015 on the shore of Lake Badovc, which supplies Pristina with drinking water.

When apprehended, they were armed, masked, and in military uniforms, with an IS flag.

The authorities temporarily turned off the water supply at the time, fearing poisoning, but they found none.

The Muslim majority in Kosovo practices a mostly moderate version of Islam.

However, authorities estimate that more than 300 Kosovars have gone to fight in Syria and Iraq and more than 50 have been killed.

Concerned over the potential threat posed by those who return, Kosovo has adopted an antiterror law under which citizens advocating or participating in armed conflicts outside the country face up to 15 years in prison.

Based on reporting by AFP and Reuters

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