French border authorities seized the passports of six would-be jihadi fighters – and their identity cards – as they attempted to travel to Syria on Monday.
Interior Minister Bernard Cazeneuve told reporters at a briefing that intelligence personnel believed the men were heading for Raqqa to join Daesh, the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria terrorist organization.
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The passports are to be held for six months, after which the order can be renewed, authorities said. The men have the right to appeal the confiscation in a court of law.
Seizing passports of travelers heading to terrorist combat zones is one of the measures that was implemented last November in France as part of its new counter-terrorism initiative.
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