French Militant to Be Retried as Prosecutors Seek Life Term

The court found that Vilus supervised executions in Syria as a senior figure in the ISIS extremist group | AFP
The court found that Vilus supervised executions in Syria as a senior figure in the ISIS extremist group | AFP
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French Militant to Be Retried as Prosecutors Seek Life Term

The court found that Vilus supervised executions in Syria as a senior figure in the ISIS extremist group | AFP
The court found that Vilus supervised executions in Syria as a senior figure in the ISIS extremist group | AFP

A French militant given a 30-year jail term last week for crimes committed in Syria, will be retried after prosecutors appealed Thursday seeking life imprisonment.

On Friday, a court jailed Vilus, 30, for crimes committed between 2013 and 2015 when he was a senior figure in the ISIS extremist group, including overseeing the execution of two prisoners.

Vilus was found guilty of all the charges against him, including membership of a terror organization, heading a group of ISIS fighters, and "aggravated murder".

The judges handed down a 30-year prison term, of which Vilus would have to serve at least two-thirds, or 20 years, before parole can be considered.

France's National Anti-Terror Prosecutor's office had sought a life sentence, with a minimum 22 years to be served, and said Thursday it had filed an appeal against the ruling.

The appeal automatically gives rise to a retrial in front of a court that will be specially constituted as this concerns a terror case.

At the original trial, public prosecutor Guillaume Michelin sought the highest sentence arguing Vilus "hasn't changed one bit" since his time with ISIS.

"All the steps in the accused's journey are interlocked with the construction of the caliphate," said the prosecutor, referring to the militant-ruled area that ISIS had carved out in Syria and Iraq.

"It is your responsibility to put a definite end to the bloodshed," he told the court at the time.

But the presiding judge said he wanted to leave the convicted man with "a glimmer of hope" and an opportunity to "evolve".

The trial court found that Vilus had supervised executions as a member of the religious police in the north-eastern Syrian town Ash Shaddadi, close to the Iraqi border.

In a 2015 video released by ISIS' media department, a man alleged to be Vilus is two meters away as two kneeling and blindfolded prisoners -- one belonging to the Free Syrian Army rebel fighters and the other a member of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's army -- are executed with a bullet to the head.

His arrest and trial were seen as a major coup for the French security services, as Vilus is believed to have known many French militants in Syria.

Vilus had admitted to being in contact with Abdelhamid Abaaoud -- the man French secret services believe is the mastermind of the November 2015 terror attacks in Paris.



White House: Trump to Decide on US Action in Israel-Iran Conflict Within 2 Weeks

First responders inspect a heavily-damaged building at Soroka Hospital in Beersheba in southern Israel following an Iranian missile attack on June 19, 2025. (Photo by MAYA LEVIN / AFP)
First responders inspect a heavily-damaged building at Soroka Hospital in Beersheba in southern Israel following an Iranian missile attack on June 19, 2025. (Photo by MAYA LEVIN / AFP)
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White House: Trump to Decide on US Action in Israel-Iran Conflict Within 2 Weeks

First responders inspect a heavily-damaged building at Soroka Hospital in Beersheba in southern Israel following an Iranian missile attack on June 19, 2025. (Photo by MAYA LEVIN / AFP)
First responders inspect a heavily-damaged building at Soroka Hospital in Beersheba in southern Israel following an Iranian missile attack on June 19, 2025. (Photo by MAYA LEVIN / AFP)

The White House said on Thursday that President Donald Trump will make a decision on whether the US will get involved in the Israel-Iran conflict in the next two weeks.

Citing a message from Trump, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters: "Based on the fact that there's a substantial chance of negotiations that may or may not take place with Iran in the near future, I will make my decision whether or not to go within the next two weeks."

Trump said Wednesday he doesn’t want to carry out a US strike on Iran but suggested he stands ready to act if it’s necessary to extinguish Iran’s nuclear program.

Russia warned the US against entering the Israel-Iran conflict.

“US military interference would be an extremely dangerous step with truly unpredictable negative consequences,” Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova said at a briefing.

The comments come after Iran’s state media said the country’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi will meet with European counterparts in Geneva on Friday.

French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot did not confirm the Geneva meeting.

The message from Iranian authorities was “relatively clear: there is a willingness to resume talks, including with the United States, provided that a ceasefire can be reached,” Barrot told a news conference in Paris.

Barrot said that France and Europeans partners are ready to “resume negotiations” with Iran.