Following her membership of the terrorist militia Islamic State (IS) in Syria, a 22-year-old woman has been given a suspended juvenile sentence of two years. She thus leaves the justice centre in Halle “at large” about half a year after the trial began, a spokesperson for the Higher Regional Court (OLG) in Naumburg said on Wednesday. The public had been excluded from the trial since the first day of the trial, as the accused was a minor at the time of the crime and the protection of personality had to be particularly safeguarded according to the court.
According to the court, membership in a foreign terrorist organisation as well as a violation of the Weapons Act and the War Weapons Control Act were proven. However, the court acquitted the accused of aiding and abetting a crime against humanity.
In 2015, the then 15-year-old defendant had joined IS and married one of its fighters, the court spokesperson said. She had identified herself with the goals of the terrorist militia and had contributed to its promotion “to the best of her ability”. Among other things, the teenager had been employed in one of the organisation’s hospitals. She also reportedly possessed a firearm and had temporary “control over a Kalashnikov” – a weapon subject to the War Weapons Control Act.
However, the court did not see sufficient evidence for the accusation that she had aided and abetted in the slavery of a Yazidi slave. The spokesperson explained the court’s decision by saying that the contact with the slave held by her husband was only “occasional”.
The judges assessed positively the defendant’s “largely confessed statement, lack of previous convictions and high willingness to deal with the crime”. The young woman had shown a strong will for resocialisation, the spokesman continued. She was committed “to a very considerable extent” to reintegrating into social life. This included parental care for her children and her efforts in an education.
A documentary on the ARD television channel had documented the father’s efforts to repatriate his daughter years ago and painted a picture of the girl at that time as a rather naïve, but by no means malicious character. This lack of “harmful tendencies” was also confirmed by the court for the now 22-year-old, who outwardly took note of the verdict without the presence of her family in the courtroom.
The verdict is not yet legally binding. The accused and the prosecution can appeal against it within one week.
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