AMSTERDAM: A Dutch court has convicted six Muslim men of membership of a terrorist network that aimed to recruit youngsters to fight with groups such as Islamic State in Syria.

The six were among eight men and a woman convicted Thursday of various crimes linked to a network of radical Muslims in The Hague.

At a heavily guarded courtroom in Amsterdam, judges have handed down sentences of up to six years at the end of a trial that pitted tough terror laws against the Netherlands' traditional tolerance and freedom of expression and religion.

Presiding Judge Rene Elkerbout says the organization "has contributed on a large scale to a climate in which youngsters felt called upon to go to Syria and fight."