A senior American military official is claiming that there are a few Jamaicans among foreign fighters who have gone to Syria where militant group Islamic State has seized large swathes of territory.
He also warned on Thursday that existing human smuggling networks are in place that could allow these foreign fighters to infiltrate the United States if they return from the conflict zone.
A report by the Washington Post says Marine Corps General John F. Kelly, Chief of U.S. Southern Command, on Thursday told the Senate Armed Services Committee that the networks are so efficient that a terrorist could enter the United States undetected.
He said about 100 people from countries in the Caribbean and South America have joined the Islamic State.
More than 15,000 foreign fighters have poured into the Middle East to join Islamic State, traveling primarily to Syria.
Major Kelly, who oversees U.S military operations in Central and South America as well as the Caribbean, acknowledged that the number of fighters coming from this region is small, but said the countries involved do not have the ability to properly monitor those returning.
He claimed that foreign fighters have gone to Syria from Jamaica, Trinidad & Tobago, Suriname, and Venezuela.
