Runaway German girl found in Mosul ruins
Teenager and 20 other suspected IS fighters reportedly found hiding in tunnels
A 16-year-old German girl who left her home town near Dresden to travel to Syria has reportedly been found in Mosul, Iraq.
Linda Wenzel "ran away from home" a year ago after her parents separated, the Daily Mail reports. She is believed to have formed an online relationship with a man belonging to Islamic State.
Wenzel was found last week, hiding in Mosul tunnels built by the terrorists, alongside weapons and suicide vests, Russia Today reports, citing a Die Welt story.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
She has been handed over to US troops in Iraq for questioning, the Daily Telegraph says. It adds she was found with a group of 20 female fighters, including Russian, Turkish, Canadian and Chechen women.
Wenzel grew up in a Protestant family and reportedly had not shown any interest in religion until shortly before her disappearance. Friends say she converted to Islam in early 2016, began learning Arabic and started taking the Koran to school.
Police believe she was radicalised online by a Muslim man who persuaded her to travel to Syria last summer. She is said to have used fake documents to travel to Istanbul, Turkey, where police lost track of her.
Vian Dakhil, of the Council of Representatives of Iraq, confirmed Wenzel's identity on Twitter and said she had been a sniper for IS. He also claimed her mother "didn’t deny" the girl in the photo was Wenzel.
Mosul has been gripped by intense fighting in recent months as Iraqi forces sought to retake control of the city after it fell to IS in 2014. Iraq's government declared victory in the city earlier this month.
Although accurate statistics are difficult to obtain, an estimated 930 people, 20 per cent of them female, have left Germany to fight in Syria or Iraq, according to Hans-Georg Maassen, president of Germany's domestic security agency.
A German security report says young people can easily be indoctrinated to “develop a readiness to consequently obey the order to kill unbelievers”.
The Guardian reports "up to 30,000 foreign fighters are thought to have crossed into Syria" to fight alongside IS, with the US government estimating as many as 25,000 of them have since been killed.
About 850 Britons are thought to have joined the group in Syria. Anyone returning to the UK who is thought to have fought for IS in Syria may face life in prison under the Terrorism Act.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
-
Quincy Jones, music icon, is dead at 91
Speed Read The legendary producer is perhaps best known as the architect behind Michael Jackson's 'Thriller'
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Moldova's pro-West president wins 2nd term
Speed Read Maia Sandu beat Alexandr Stoianoglo, despite suspicions of Russia meddling in the election
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
2024 race ends with swing state barnstorming
Speed Read Kamala Harris and Donald Trump held rallies in battlegrounds over the weekend
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Has the Taliban banned women from speaking?
Today's Big Question 'Rambling' message about 'bizarre' restriction joins series of recent decrees that amount to silencing of Afghanistan's women
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published
-
Cuba's energy crisis
The Explainer Already beset by a host of issues, the island nation is struggling with nationwide blackouts
By Rebekah Evans, The Week UK Published
-
Putin's fixation with shamans
Under the Radar Secretive Russian leader, said to be fascinated with occult and pagan rituals, allegedly asked for blessing over nuclear weapons
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published
-
Chimpanzees are dying of human diseases
Under the radar Great apes are vulnerable to human pathogens thanks to genetic similarity, increased contact and no immunity
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published
-
Deaths of Jesse Baird and Luke Davies hang over Sydney's Mardi Gras
The Explainer Police officer, the former partner of TV presenter victim, charged with two counts of murder after turning himself in
By Austin Chen, The Week UK Published
-
Quiz of The Week: 24 February - 1 March
Puzzles and Quizzes Have you been paying attention to The Week's news?
By Sorcha Bradley, The Week UK Published
-
Will mounting discontent affect Iran election?
Today's Big Question Low turnout is expected in poll seen as crucial test for Tehran's leadership
By Sorcha Bradley, The Week UK Published
-
Sweden clears final NATO hurdle with Hungary vote
Speed Read Hungary's parliament overwhelmingly approved Sweden's accession to NATO
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published