(Swiss Info) The United States offered several times to repatriate three Swiss jihadists detained in Syria, an offer that Switzerland refused, the Le Temps newspaper has said.
The original proposal dated back to 2018, Le Temps said on Thursday. The Swiss Federal Department of Foreign Affairs (FDFA) apparently received a letter offering to repatriate the men and their families to a Swiss airport for $500,000 (CHF491,000).
The offer was refused on account of the price, which was judged indefensible if it became public, Le Temps reported.
At the time the Swiss government had not drawn up their policy on repatriation of “jihadi travellers.” This came several months later, in March 2019, when the Swiss government said that Swiss citizens who went to Syria and Iraq to join Islamic State should face trial under international legal standards in the country where they committed their crimes.
