Repatriation without Rehabilitation? The Case of North Macedonian Foreign Fighters

North Macedonia is a small country of 1.8 million people in the Western Balkans, a region that has proven to be an important source of foreign fighters joining the ranks of the Islamic State, often taking their families with them. It is also one of the few places, where governments have actively repatriated their citizens following the end of the Caliphate. Amongst the Western Balkan states, North Macedonia and Kosovo stand out as they have not only allowed women and children to return but men too, and in some cases actively brought them home, a step considered socially and politically unfeasible in most European countries. However, North Macedonia suffers deep socio-economic divides along ethnic and religious lines, combined with weak and underfunded governmental institutions often not equipped to carry out adequate rehabilitation and reintegration. These conditions can bring about a number of challenges that can have long-term social and security implications regarding repatriated, but not adequately rehabilitated and reintegrated returnees. These challenges are explored below.