Christof Gramm, the head of the MAD (Militärischer Abschirmdienst), said that at least 20 ex-German soldiers would be identified among the fighters of ISIS and other groups in the Middle East.
The warning is issued after a court acquitted last month of a German army soldier found in possession of jihadist material on his computer.
The soldier had refused to reveal the reasons for a trip to Egypt in the 2013, during which he had visited a fundamentalist madrasah and asked for the introduction of Sharia law in Germany.
"Anyone who has access to secret documents, as well as those who work at facilities that can be sabotaged, such as aqueducts, must undergo security checks." - said Dr. Gramm - "However, there is no preventive control for those who are already trained to fight."
Attacks on Charlie Hebdo and other targets in Paris have increased the concern that jihadists have access to military training, since "the killers clearly had some basic military skills".
"It would be remiss if a chief of counterintelligence didn't ask: What happens if an Islamist trained by the army does something and we didn't notice anything?"
"The counterespionage had kept an eye on the soldier, then acquitted, for some time before intervening," added Dr. Gramm.
"Every year we treat about 400 suspected cases: Islamists and far-right".
"The greatest number is still far-right. But for the potential danger Islamists are particularly worrying: because it is more difficult to enter their environment."
Most reports are false alarms but the number of authentic alarm cases is "double digit".
No soldier currently serving in the German army has been found fighting for extremist groups, Gramm concluded.
In addition to the 20 ex military drafts in the Middle East, a former soldier was identified among pro-Russian militants in eastern Ukraine.
Source: The Telegraph
(photo: Bundeswehr)
