<p> A man dubbed the "Emir of Winterthur" by Swiss media, described by prosecutors as a leading figure among Islamist militants in Switzerland, was sentenced to 50 months in prison on Friday for supporting and recruiting for Islamic State.</p>.<p>Prosecutors said the 34-year-old Swiss-Italian dual citizen had travelled to Islamic State-controlled areas of Syria in 2013, where he joined a combat unit aligned to the militant group.</p>.<p>Upon returning to Switzerland, he capitalised on his reputation as a warrior to motivate several people to join Islamic State, prosecutors said. They called him "a Salafist guiding figure in Switzerland" who liaised with several convicted Islamic State recruiters in Europe.</p>.<p>The defendant, whose identity was not made public under Swiss legal rules, pleaded not guilty but was convicted of supporting a criminal organisation and violating a ban on representations of acts of violence, the Federal Criminal Court said.</p>.<p>Broadcaster SRF said the man had told the court he had briefly embraced jihadist ideology but had since had a change of heart and regretted the episode. He said he had travelled to Syria to provide humanitarian assistance.</p>.<p>Winterthur is the suburb of Zurich where he lived and ran a training gym.</p>.<p>The court also levied a suspended 4,000 Swiss franc ($4,400) fine on a second defendant with Swiss-Macedonian dual citizenship, who was convicted of supporting a criminal organisation. Prosecutors said he tried to travel to Islamic State-held territory to join the organisation and recruited one other person to join it.</p>.<p>Switzerland has not experienced deadly militant attacks such as those that have hit neighbouring countries including Germany and France. But it has identified hundreds of residents deemed a threat and militants who have travelled to war zones.</p>
<p> A man dubbed the "Emir of Winterthur" by Swiss media, described by prosecutors as a leading figure among Islamist militants in Switzerland, was sentenced to 50 months in prison on Friday for supporting and recruiting for Islamic State.</p>.<p>Prosecutors said the 34-year-old Swiss-Italian dual citizen had travelled to Islamic State-controlled areas of Syria in 2013, where he joined a combat unit aligned to the militant group.</p>.<p>Upon returning to Switzerland, he capitalised on his reputation as a warrior to motivate several people to join Islamic State, prosecutors said. They called him "a Salafist guiding figure in Switzerland" who liaised with several convicted Islamic State recruiters in Europe.</p>.<p>The defendant, whose identity was not made public under Swiss legal rules, pleaded not guilty but was convicted of supporting a criminal organisation and violating a ban on representations of acts of violence, the Federal Criminal Court said.</p>.<p>Broadcaster SRF said the man had told the court he had briefly embraced jihadist ideology but had since had a change of heart and regretted the episode. He said he had travelled to Syria to provide humanitarian assistance.</p>.<p>Winterthur is the suburb of Zurich where he lived and ran a training gym.</p>.<p>The court also levied a suspended 4,000 Swiss franc ($4,400) fine on a second defendant with Swiss-Macedonian dual citizenship, who was convicted of supporting a criminal organisation. Prosecutors said he tried to travel to Islamic State-held territory to join the organisation and recruited one other person to join it.</p>.<p>Switzerland has not experienced deadly militant attacks such as those that have hit neighbouring countries including Germany and France. But it has identified hundreds of residents deemed a threat and militants who have travelled to war zones.</p>