The children of Denmark's jihadists who left their country to join the terrorists' cause in the Middle East will no longer be automatically granted Danish citizenship, according to a new agreement between the government and the right-wing Danish People's Party.
Integration Minister Inger Støjberg of the ruling liberal-conservative party Venstre, said the practice of automatically granting citizenship must end.
"They are born to parents who have turned their backs on Denmark, and therefore should not belong in Denmark", Støjberg told Danish Radio.
The Danish People's Party's spokesman Christian Langballe welcomed this step, stressing that it is consistent with his party's wishes.
"They were born down there. They have never known Denmark, they have no connection with Denmark, and we must remember that their parents chose to go down to the warzone and fight with the the Islamic State*. And so they have to accept the consequences", Langballe said.
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In another legislative step, the government agreed to make it possible to revoke "foreign fighters'" citizenship administratively, that is without a court being involved. However, the latter punishment will only apply to jihadists with dual citizenship.
Langballe stressed the paramount importance of this step.
"We don't want them back home", Langballe explained, citing the exceptional threat from returning jihadists. "In France alone, they committed this terrible attack in Bataclan, killing 129 people".
"Honestly, there is no reason they should go to Denmark and do the whole thing, if they have another citizenship. They are undesired in Denmark", she stressed.
Danish Justice Minister Søren Pape Poulsen recently lamented the fact that Denmark cannot stop Danish citizens from returning, despite them having committed atrocities abroad.
"The very best thing would be if they all died in battle down there, but unfortunately this is not the case", Pape Poulsen said, as quoted by Danish Radio.
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According to the Danish Police Intelligence Service's (PET) assessment, 150 people have left Denmark for Iraq and Syria to join the jihadists' cause since 2012. About 40 of them are still believed to be in the Middle East. About a third of the Danish jihadists are believed to have returned. A total of 13 have been indicted in Denmark so far.
Despite having the support of a majority in parliament, a formal decision will only be taken after a general election in June 2019, Danish Radio concluded.
* Daesh (ISIL/ISIS/IS/the Islamic State) is a terrorist organisation banned in Russia
