Germany Bans Islamic State

Now there's an idea.

At WSJ, "Around 400 German Nationals and Residents Have Joined Militant Group in Syria and Iraq":

BERLIN—Germany banned all activities of the Islamic State militant group in the country on Friday after hundreds of German nationals and residents traveled to Syria and Iraq to join the radical faction there while returnees were agitating and rallying supporters at home.

The ban, which also includes the seizure of IS's financial assets, is one step away from classifying IS as a terrorist group—a decision that can only be made by a court of law at the end of what is generally a time-consuming process. The ban targets propaganda on the Internet and social media and includes the display of IS symbols and flags.

About 400 German nationals and residents had joined IS in Syria and Iraq, said Interior Minister Thomas de Maizière, who announced the ban.

"More than 100 Islamists have returned. Many frustrated, but others with combat experience. They have learned to hate and kill," Mr. de Maizière told reporters.

"They are well connected. They have been well trained to fight and are possibly willing to share their knowledge with other supporters and recruit new supporters. We must prevent radical Islamists bringing their Jihad to our cities. We don't know what they are doing but it could be that they will carry out attacks."

The ban includes displaying IS symbols publicly during gatherings or in writings, photos, recordings, images or illustrations. These symbols include the IS flag which displays the beginning of the Islamic profession of faith as well as the prophet's seal in white script on black background. The ban doesn't target Islamic symbols in general but only those that the IS group has been using since 2004 in a terrorist context.

Last month, Berlin took a rare decision to deliver antitank weaponry and machine guns to help Kurdish fighters in Iraq battling Islamic State in norther Iraq. This week, however, Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier overruled some conservative lawmakers who had called on the government to assist the U.S. in conducting airstrikes against IS positions in Iraq and Syria.

While Germany has dispatched troops abroad since the 1990s, most notably in the Balkans and Afghanistan, and has occasionally delivered weapons in crisis regions, it has generally sought to avoid overseas military involvement because of its history of international aggression under the Nazis.

"The [IS ban] is necessary because the biggest threat to internal security stems from returning IS fighters and because support activities, such as publicly expressing sympathy for IS and recruiting members and collecting money, are putting the internal security of our country at risk—not only that of countries and regions where IS is fighting," said Wolfgang Bosbach, head of the lower house of parliament's interior affairs committee and lawmaker with the ruling Christian Democratic Union party, ahead of the announcement.

The planned ban comes after supporters of the IS group attacked a group of Yazidis in the western German town of Herford last month. IS has been accused of ethnic cleansing and attempted genocide after systematic attacks on the religious minority in northern Iraq.

In its 2013 report, published in June this year, the Office for the Protection of the Constitution, the internal intelligence agency, said it had no information about IS' structure or members in Germany. But it said Islamic terrorism is the main security threat facing Germany.

Overall support for Islamic groups has been on the rise in Germany. The agency estimates that the number of potential supporters rose to 43,190 last year from 42,550 in 2012 and 38,080 in 2011.

The growing visibility of such groups also made headlines last week when a patrol of self-proclaimed Shariah Police took to the streets to urge Turkish people in the western German city of Wuppertal to stop drinking alcohol and gambling for money.

Mr. de Maizière called on the public to help the government in its efforts to fight IS influence in Germany.

"The security forces alone won't be able to win the fight against the Islamic radicalization," he said. "The radicalization often takes place unnoticed by the public, on the Q.T., on the Internet. That's why parents, siblings, neighbors and friends are called upon."

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