The witness account, published in Le Parisien August 25, is considered “legitimate” by French intelligence services. A French jihadist, arrested in the beginning of June in Turkey and imprisoned in France, revealed precious information to investigators. According to the prisoner, since its birth the Islamic State has created a spy network that works to assure the security of both the territories it controls and those it does not.
According to his testimony, nearly 1,500 jihadists are in the network, called EMNI. “It’s led by an Iraqi emir who is number 3 or 4,” in the Islamic State, says the Frenchman. To become a member of the network one needs to be recommended by “a trustworthy person.”
Each spy must offer to commit 50,000 euros to commit an attack in Europe. The network’s objectives are to “detect spies in Iraq and Syria,” where the group controls most of its territory. Regarding territory outside of its control, the network’s goal is “to send people throughout the world to carry out violent acts, kill, or recruit young people or to bring back chemicals for weapons.”
The prisoner promised to reveal additional information, but does not wish to divulge everything at once. “I know two methods for recruitment and how they send people to Europe for attack missions,” he said. “I also have information on how to prevent attacks in Belgium and France. But I don’t wish to say anymore, I want promises of justice.”
