عربي English Türkçe اردو فارسى
Logo
Latest News
Arab World

Iraq Issues Death Sentence against Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi’s Wife

The Supreme Judicial Council said the Yazidi women were kidnapped by ISIS gangs and then held prisoner by the woman in her house in Mosul. Photo: local media
The Supreme Judicial Council said the Yazidi women were kidnapped by ISIS gangs and then held prisoner by the woman in her house in Mosul. Photo: local media
TT
TT

Iraq Issues Death Sentence against Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi’s Wife

The Supreme Judicial Council said the Yazidi women were kidnapped by ISIS gangs and then held prisoner by the woman in her house in Mosul. Photo: local media
The Supreme Judicial Council said the Yazidi women were kidnapped by ISIS gangs and then held prisoner by the woman in her house in Mosul. Photo: local media

An Iraqi court issued a death sentence against a wife of the late ISIS leader, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, for working with the group and detaining Yazidi women in her home, the Iraqi judiciary said on Wednesday without naming the woman.
The Supreme Judicial Council in Iraq said the Yazidi women were kidnapped by ISIS gangs in Sinjar district, west of Nineveh Governorate, and then held prisoner by the woman in her house in Mosul. The woman is being held in Iraqi custody.

"The criminal court today sentenced Baghdadi's wife to death by hanging for crimes against humanity and genocide against the Yazidi people and also for contributing to terrorism actions," a court official who declined to go on record as he is not authorized to talk to the media told Reuters.

The ruling must be ratified by an Iraqi appeal court to become final and applicable, the official added.

Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, who was killed in November 2019 in a raid by US special forces in northwestern Syria, rose from obscurity to lead the extremist group and declare himself "caliph" of all Muslims, holding sway over huge areas of Iraq and Syria from 2014-2017 before ISIS’ control disintegrated under US-led attacks.

Most Viewed

 
 
Arab World

Security Tightened in Syria's Raqqa after ISIS Jailbreak

ISIS prisoners are seen at a jail in Raqqa, Syria. (Asharq Al-Awsat)
ISIS prisoners are seen at a jail in Raqqa, Syria. (Asharq Al-Awsat)
TT
TT

Security Tightened in Syria's Raqqa after ISIS Jailbreak

ISIS prisoners are seen at a jail in Raqqa, Syria. (Asharq Al-Awsat)
ISIS prisoners are seen at a jail in Raqqa, Syria. (Asharq Al-Awsat)

The Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) tightened security measures in Syria’s northern city of Raqqa after foreign ISIS members escaped from jail in late August.

ISIS slogans were also painted on walls in Raqqa, raising concerns over the threat of the extremist group.

Residents discovered the slogans on Saturday morning, reminding them of the years they spent under ISIS’ brutal rule.

The group was defeated in Syria in 2019, but its cells remain active.

A security source told Asharq Al-Awsat that the SDF transferred dozens of foreign prisoners from al-Matahen jail to other more secure facilities following the jailbreak.

Two Russian, two Afghan and one Libyan ISIS members escaped al-Matahen in August.

American forces and the SDF managed to detain one of the Russians and the Libyan a day later. The rest are still on the run.

The source said the escape reminded the world and member countries of the anti-ISIS International Coalition of the threat of the extremist group and that its cells were still capable of carrying out attacks and striking fear in the local population.

Separately, the SDF announced on Saturday the arrest of 34 people suspected of joining ISIS cells.

The SDF carried out 16 security operations against ISIS in July and August, leaving at least five people dead.

Head of the SDF media center Farhad Shami told Asharq Al-Awsat that dangerous ISIS members were among the detainees.

They had planned and carried out several terrorist attacks in Kurdish-held regions, he revealed.

Among them was the chief official responsible for booby-trapping cars and another responsible for financing ISIS in Raqqa, he added.