Germany’s federal prosecutor says the number of inquires related to the ISIL-linked suspects returning home after fighting alongside the terror group in the Middle East has increased over the past year.

German chief federal prosecutor, Harald Range, said on Monday that some 106 returnees suspected of briefly joining ISIL Takfiri militants are currently being investigated in 68 preliminary or criminal inquiries.

The number of inquiries this year has seen a sharp increase from the figure at the beginning of last year, which stood at five investigations into eight suspects.

Range added that the number would most likely continue to increase.

Back in January, Germany decided to tighten a foreign travel ban on recognized ISIL militants in order to prevent them from reaching Syria or Iraq.

Authorities can also confiscate passports belonging to known militants. They can be also stripped of their national identity cards, which allow them to travel to Turkey within the European Union Schengen no-visa area.

Instead, replacement identity cards will be given to such individuals for periods of up to three years. These ID cards are stamped with a no-travel advisory written in a number of different languages.

This comes as concerns are on the rise about ISIL militants carrying out attacks after returning to Germany and other European countries.

The ISIL terrorists currently control parts of Iraq and the neighboring Syria, where they have committed heinous crimes.

SZH/MKA/SS