Kosovo sentences 7 for ties to terror groups in Syria

A Kosovo court has sentenced seven Albanian citizens on charges of terror, participating in terror groups and recruiting for Islamic terror groups in Syria.

A statement today from the court in the capital, Pristina, said the seven defendants, identified only by their initials, received prison sentences ranging from 2 ½ to 4 ½ years.

Online news site Kallxo.Com reports that some of them acknowledged having fought with anti-government forces in Syria, while others said they had gone to assist Syrian refugees in Turkey. A few expressed regret for going to Syria, the news site says.

A few hundred Albanians from Kosovo are believed to have joined Islamic extremist groups and about 70 reportedly are still active with the groups in Syria and Iraq.