More than 20,000 foreign fighters have fled to Syria and Iraq , turning the region into an ‘ international finishing school ’ for jihadists , an alarming report found . Fighters from 100 nations – more than half the countries in the world – have joined militant groups such as Al Qaeda and Islamic State , according to research by the United Nations . Worryingly , the report warned if IS was defeated in the war-torn region then the barbarous foreign fighters could be scattered across the world . Scroll down for video . More than 20,000 foreign fighters from more than half the countries in the world have joined militant groups such as Al Qaeda and Islamic State , according to a report by the United Nations . The number of foreign fighters worldwide soared by a staggering 71 per cent between the middle of 2014 and March 2015 after IS gained significant territory . Syria and Iraq were by far the biggest destinations , with over 20,000 foreign fighters travelling to the region to fight for mainly IS but also the Al-Nusra Front . The panel said the thousands of foreign fighters who travelled to both countries are living and working in ‘ a veritable “ international finishing school ” for extremists ’ as was the case in Afghanistan in the 1990s . Afghan security forces estimated in March – three months after British troops withdrew - that about 6,500 foreign fighters were active in the country . And it said hundreds of foreigners are fighting in Yemen , Libya and Pakistan , around 100 in Somalia , and others in the Sahel countries in northern Africa , and in the Philippines . The panel of experts monitoring UN sanctions against Al-Qaeda said in the report that the scale of the problem has increased over the past three years and the flow of foreign fighters ‘ is higher than it has ever been historically ’ . The number of foreign fighters worldwide soared by a staggering 71 per cent between the middle of 2014 and March 2015 after IS gained significant territory . The overall number of foreign terrorist fighters has ‘ risen sharply from a few thousand ... a decade ago to more than 25,000 today , ’ the panel said in the report to the UN Security Council . A military defeat of the Islamic State group in Syria and Iraq could have the unintended consequence of scattering foreign terrorist fighters across the world , the panel said . It noted that the ‘ watch list ’ in Turkey - a key crossing point to Syria and Iraq - now includes 12,500 individuals . And while governments are focusing on countering the threat from fighters returning home , the panel said it ’ s possible that some may be traumatised by what they saw and need psychological help . Others may be recruited by criminal networks . The number of countries the fighters come from has also risen dramatically from a small group in the 1990s to over 100 today , including some that have never had previous links with Al-Qaeda associated groups , the panel said . It cited the ‘ high number ’ of foreign fighters from Tunisia , Morocco , France and Russia , the increase in fighters from the Maldives , Finland and Trinidad and Tobago , and the first fighters from some countries in sub-Saharan Africa . Syria and Iraq were by far the biggest destinations , with fighters mainly travelling to the region to fight for IS but also the Al-Nusra Front ( pictured , a fighter from the Al-Qaeda linked militant group ) The panel said the fighters and their networks ‘ pose an immediate and long-term threat ’ and ‘ an urgent global security problem ’ that needs to be tackled on many fronts and has no easy solution . With globalised travel , it said , the chance of a person from any country becoming a victim of a foreign terrorist attack ‘ is growing , particularly with attacks targeting hotels , public spaces and venues ’ . But the panel noted that a longstanding terrorist goal is ‘ generating public panic ’ and stressed that the response needs to ‘ be measured , effective and proportionate. ’ It said the most effective policy is to prevent the radicalization , recruitment and travel of would-be fighters . The panel noted that less than 10 per cent of basic information to identify foreign fighters has been put in global systems and called for greater intelligence sharing .
Number of foreign fighters worldwide soared by 71 % from today to now . Syria and Iraq were most popular regions - mainly for IS and Al-Nusra Front . United Nations report said fighters came from over half world 's countries . It warned if IS was defeated foreign fighters could scatter across the globe .