11-Member Family–Including Baby–Leave France For Syria Jihad

11-Member Family–Including Baby–Leave France For Syria Jihad

An entire French family has packed up and left for Syria, where they are likely to take part in the fighting on the side of the Sunni Islamist opposition forces.

A legal source told AFP Wednesday that the family in question left for Syria sometime at the end of September.

The 11-strong family reportedly consists of a man, his two sisters, and their mother. Additionally, the spouses of the aforementioned individuals,  including their children, are on their way to the jihad in Syria. Even a baby is said to be within the mix.

France’s Nice-Matin newspaper interviewed a 27-year-old woman by the name of Andrea, who said she left for Syria with her four and six-year-old sons.

Andrea reportedly told her parents of her journey: “All his well. I am in a superb region.” She then revealed to a friend that her religion was the chief motivation for the journey. “I was not going to go, but before Allah I could not stand back,” declared Andrea.

Andrea’s father told Nice-Matin that she is a convert to Islam. “I saw how religion played a bigger and bigger part in her life,” he said, while regrettably stating that “Perhaps I should have reacted” to intervene.

The father of Andrea’s husband, who is a Muslim, confirmed with the paper that his wife, two daughters, and four grandkids had left for Syria. “I knew religion held an important place for them, but only up to a point. My whole family has disappeared, and I’m scared,” he said.

The Paris prosecutor’s office told AFP that there is a “stack of evidence” suggesting that the reports of the family leaving for Syria are true.

A poll released in August found that one in six French citizens were shockingly in support of the Islamic State terror group. Among respondents aged 18-24, popularity for the Islamic State surged to 27 percent. France is home to Europe’s largest Muslim population, with over five million citizens who observe the Islamic faith.

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