Paris Attacks Suspect Investigated in Sweden over War Crimes in Syria

A man looks at the memorial plaque near the Bataclan theater and cafe in Paris, where extremists killed 90 people on November 13, 2015. AFP
A man looks at the memorial plaque near the Bataclan theater and cafe in Paris, where extremists killed 90 people on November 13, 2015. AFP
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Paris Attacks Suspect Investigated in Sweden over War Crimes in Syria

A man looks at the memorial plaque near the Bataclan theater and cafe in Paris, where extremists killed 90 people on November 13, 2015. AFP
A man looks at the memorial plaque near the Bataclan theater and cafe in Paris, where extremists killed 90 people on November 13, 2015. AFP

Swedish extremist Osama Krayem is due to stand trial over involvement in the 2015 Paris attacks. Swedish prosecutors announced he was under investigation for "war crimes" committed in Syria as well.

A preliminary investigation by the Swedish prosecutor's office "is underway for aggravated war crimes committed in Syria", a spokesman for Sweden's Prosecution Authority told AFP.

Krayem has also been implicated in the March 22, 2016 attacks in Brussels, and identified by Belgian investigators as one of the executioners of a Jordanian pilot murdered by ISIS in early 2015 in Syria.

The pilot was burnt alive in a cage and images of his death were broadcast by the extremists.

Newspaper Le Monde reported that Sweden is investigating Krayem concerning the execution. The prosecution did not confirm this, saying preliminary investigations were confidential.

Originally from Malmo in southern Sweden, he joined ISIS in Syria in 2014 before returning to Europe by taking advantage of open routes for migrants.

Investigations have established that he traveled with Saleh Abdeslam, the last surviving member of the Paris attackers, and two other members of the cell, in October 2015.

Krayem, from a Palestinian family living in Sweden, was arrested in April 2016 in Belgium.

About 300 Swedes or Swedish residents, a quarter of them women, joined extremist organizations in Syria, mainly between 2013 and 2014, the country's intelligence service said. Half of them have since returned home.

Due to a lack of Swedish legislation at the time to prosecute "returnees" for associating with a terrorist organization, charges have been rare.

But two Swedes were sentenced to life in prison in Gothenburg in December 2015 after videos showed them taking part in beheadings.

A Swedish woman, 31, was also sentenced in March to three years in prison for taking her son to Syria.



Türkiye Criticizes Some NATO Countries’ Support for Kurdish Units in Syria

Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan met with his Czech counterpart, Jan Lipavsky, in Ankara on Tuesday (Turkish Foreign Ministry)
Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan met with his Czech counterpart, Jan Lipavsky, in Ankara on Tuesday (Turkish Foreign Ministry)
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Türkiye Criticizes Some NATO Countries’ Support for Kurdish Units in Syria

Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan met with his Czech counterpart, Jan Lipavsky, in Ankara on Tuesday (Turkish Foreign Ministry)
Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan met with his Czech counterpart, Jan Lipavsky, in Ankara on Tuesday (Turkish Foreign Ministry)

Türkiye criticized the support provided by some of its allies in NATO to the Kurdish People’s Protection Units, the largest component of the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF).

“The countries we have problems with... are America, England, and a little bit with France,” Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan said in a televised interview on Monday.

He added: “The United States maintains its presence there, and we are putting this problem on the agenda at all levels... Türkiye is continuing the highest level of diplomacy possible” as “it can no longer live with such a reality.”

The foreign minister went on to say: “We carry more sensitivity in our fight against the PKK than you (the US and the UK) do in your fight against terrorism, just on the other side of our border. It is out of the question for us to engage in any negotiations here.”

On the other hand, Fidan considered that stopping the armed conflict between the Syrian army and the opposition is currently the main “achievement” of his country and Russia.

“The most important thing that we were able to achieve in Syria along with the Russians is that there is no war currently between the army and the opposition, and the Astana negotiations and others made that possible at the present time,” he stated.

He added that Damascus needs to “use this period of calm wisely, as an opportunity to return millions of Syrians who have fled abroad to rebuild their country and revive its economy.”

The minister revealed that he discussed this matter during his recent meeting with President Vladimir Putin in Moscow.

“We are studying this matter. The return of refugees is important,” Fidan said, adding: “We want the Syrian government to exploit this period of calm, rationally... as an opportunity to solve constitutional problems and achieve peace with the opposition. But we do not see that Damascus is benefiting from this sufficiently.”