Danish govt seeks Syria travel ban after arrests

Copenhagen: Denmark's government said Friday it wanted to ban travel to areas where terror groups were operating in conflict zones in a bid to facilitate the prosecution of fighters returning from Syria.

The move came in the same week that five men were detained in Denmark on suspicion of having joined the Islamic State jihadist group while in Syria.

"It will simply be prohibited to set foot in certain areas," Justice Minister Soren Pind said in a statement.

"That way we make it easier to punish people who travel to, for example, Syria to join or support a terror organisation," he added.

Under the proposal, Danish citizens and residents would face up to six years in jail if they traveled to an area where a "terror organisation" is taking part in an armed conflict.

The maximum penalty for "letting oneself be recruited to commit acts of terrorism" would also be raised to 10 years from six, and to 16 years for those who have taken part in combat operations.