Alleged Dutch jihadist Victor D. resurfaces in Syria

Suspected Dutch jihadist Victor D. is still in Syria, he confirmed in a voice message to newspaper AD sent via Facebook messenger.

"The internet is not very fast here. I am indeed still in Syria. Everything is fine. But I think I... eh... I want some rest right now. And especially for my parents, It does not really matter to me. Especially for my parents that they do not go through everything again", he said in Dutch in the recorded message sent to the newspaper.

D. left for Syria from Heeten in 2013. He regularly communicated with people in the Netherlands. But after publishing a letter through politician Arnoud van Doorn late last year, D. dropped out of sight. In that letter D. said he planned to give himself up to the Turkish army, in an attempt to be extradited to the Netherlands so that he can attend his trial. D. is suspected of being a member of a terrorist organization, something he denies.

Why he didn't go to Turkey is unclear. D. refused to respond to AD's questions about it. In the recorded message he did say: "I do not feel like it. Yes, I do not know. I stand before a big decision. And I just want to think it through. Maybe I was too hasty." Whether he was talking about returning to the Netherlands is unclear.