Six women, three men added to Dutch terror list; bank accounts frozen

Nine more Dutch nationals, including six women, are being added to the national terrorism list because of their potential involvement in terrorist offences in Iraq and Syria, foreign minister Bert Koenders has told parliament.

Inclusion on the list means the suspects can no longer access their bank accounts, to head off the risk of them financing acts of terrorism from the Netherlands. They are also stopped from claiming any form of social security benefit or student loans.

The list is now made up of 121 people, including 28 women, and three organisations. In January 2016, the list had just 36 names.

The Dutch security service says women are playing an increasingly important role in supporting IS and its attempts to hold together the caliphate in Syria and Iraq.

They are often brought in to recruit more women for the terrorist organisation or are deployed as nurses, the ministry said.

Meanwhile, the Telegraaf reports that he Dutch intelligence services are searching for traces of DNA from jihadists who travelled from the Netherlands to Syria and Iraq.

Genetic material from hair or skin on weapons or shrapnel means there is a greater chance they can be convicted when the return to the Netherlands, the paper said.