‘Islamists Are Islamic Nazis’: Imam, Three Others Convicted of ISIS Recruiting

Four Turkish-born men, including an imam, have been convicted of recruiting for the Islamic State in Graz, the capital city of the Austrian state of Styria.

A 47-year-old imam from Turkey was sentenced to seven years in prison for recruiting “a number of young men” to join ISIS, reports The Jerusalem Post. Three other men were given sentences ranging between five months and six years for their roles in the recruiting process.

The prosecutor in the case called for strict punishment of the convicted Islamists, saying in comments reported by Kronen Zeitung: “Islamists are Islamic Nazis.”

He went on to say that “We have to stop with false tolerance” and that “Islamism supplants the rule of law if we are not careful”.

One of the convicted men had sent an AK47 rifle scope from Austria to his brother, who is an Islamic State sniper. The man’s attorney said that it was a “mistake”, claiming that he did not know what his brother needed it for.

The prosecutor had remarked in response: “He will not have used it as a paperweight.”

Austrians are increasingly concerned over the issue of Islam in their country. A recent study found that 70 per cent of Austrians believed that Islam was not compatible with the West. The study also found that 59 per cent were afraid of Muslims in Austria being terrorists and 79 per cent felt that police should closely monitor Muslim areas of the country.

Earlier this year, an Austrian intelligence report stated that Islamic extremism was still the country’s top security threat. The report found that at least 320 people from Austria had travelled to Syria or Iraq to fight for Islamist terror groups, 93 of whom are believed to have returned to Austria.