Authorities say 25 Bosnians sent home from camps in Syria

SARAJEVO, Bosnia – A group of 25 Bosnian citizens have been sent home from camps in Syria, including former Islamic State fighters and women and children, authorities said Thursday.

Bosnia’s Security Ministry said in a statement that the group included six women, twelve children and seven former foreign fighters who have been handed over to the Bosnian legal authorities.

The men are facing legal proceedings in Bosnia on suspicion of organizing terrorist groups and joining foreign paramilitary formations, Bosnia’s Prosecutor’s Office said in a statement Thursday.

It said international arrest warrants already exist for some of the suspects.

The plane carrying the Bosnian nationals from Syria landed earlier Thursday at the airport in the capital of Sarajevo under heavy security.

Bosnian officials in the past have said about 260 Bosnian citizens remain in the camps in Syria, including approximately 100 men and 160 women and children,

In 2014, Bosnia became the first country in Europe to introduce prison terms for its citizens who fought abroad. Fighters who have since returned to the country were tried and, in most cases, sentenced to prison.