In a video posted on the Internet obtained through Vice News , the foreign militants said the United States and the UK would be the next targets of their militancy.

Syria’s war has taken on an increasingly sectarian nature, and the rebellion is now dominated by factions affiliated either directly or ideologically with al-Qaeda, including the assorted al-Qaeda in Iraq (AQI) and Jabhat al-Nusra factions.

Though there are surely Syrian extremists fighting in these groups, large numbers of them are foreigners, and their motivations don’t begin or end at the Syrian border.

One hundred British nationals have reportedly joined the militant groups in Syria, joining other from the US, Canada, France, Russia, and the Netherlands.

German intelligence authorities have recently warned that German citizens are heading for Syria in increasing numbers and are able to integrate quickly into the foreign-backed militant groups in Syria.

On May 18, Syrian President Bashar al-Assad said that militants from 29 different countries are now fighting against the government in different parts of the country.

The war in Syria started in March 2011, when pro-reform protests turned into a massive insurgency following the intervention of Western and regional states.

Since the start of the war al-Qaeda affiliated groups have been emerging under different names in Syria, fighting at the side of the US-backed opposition which is leading one of the bloodiest conflicts in the recent history.

According to the United Nations, more than 100,000 people have been killed and millions displaced due to the turmoil that has gripped Syria for over two years.

SHI/SHI