‘Everyone deserves 2nd chance’: Germans say 16yo girl suspected of joining ISIS should return home

“The girl is 16 and got into this mess apparently at about 15, or 14 and a half, via the internet or whatever. I believe she should return. Everyone has a right to make a mistake and everyone should be given a second chance at least once,” Peter Haag told Ruptly video news agency. Haag is a resident of the German eastern town of Pulsnitz, where the girl, identified only as Linda W., lived before traveling to Iraq to join Islamic State.

“I imagine being her grandmother or great grandmother, and I find it terrible that a child goes down such a road. I hope she will be found and will live another life someday,” Erika Johne, another local resident, told Ruptly.

Some local residents even staged a small demonstration in front of the city hall in support of the girl. They also sought to draw attention to the lack of care and support for children that leaves them vulnerable to extremist propaganda.

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