Dutch court convicts 6 Muslims of terror group membership
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AMSTERDAM - A Dutch court convicted six Muslim men Thursday of membership in a terror network that recruited youngsters to fight with groups such as Islamic State in Syria, a trial that pitted tough terror laws against the Netherlands' tradition of tolerance and freedom of expression.
The six were among eight men and one woman convicted Thursday of various crimes linked to a network of radical Muslims that operated in an impoverished neighborhood of The Hague, spreading radical Islamic messages on social media, websites and at readings.
At a heavily guarded courtroom in Amsterdam, a three-judge panel handed down sentences of up to six years - high by Dutch standards and intended, the court said, to send a clear deterrent message in a country that has seen some 220 people leave to fight in Syria and Iraq.
