- Individual under probation due to affiliation with the Islamic State group, aged 32 years
For her involvement with the extremist group ISIS (Islamic State), a 32-year-old woman from Hanover was given a suspended sentence of one year and three months. The woman acknowledged her part in the charges and distanced herself from ISIS during the trial, as the Higher Regional Court (OLG) in Celle declared.
This woman left for Syria in 2014 to unite with her husband, whom she married digitally according to Islamic traditions. She managed the household and looked after him upon his return from assignments, earning financial support from the extremist group. In 2016, she was remarried to another man and also took care of children belonging to other militants' families.
According to court records, the woman, now 32, was captured by Kurdish forces in 2017 and kept at an internment camp. After its disbandment, she found herself in Turkey and was eventually deported back to Germany in 2019.
Designated as an accomplice
The court handed down a lighter sentence due to the woman's classification as an accomplice. She had no prior convictions, either. The court pointed out that her voyage to ISIS was primarily driven by love. The judgment also considered the fact that the defendant was detained under "partly inhumane conditions" for nearly two years in the camp, as the OLG further explained.
The Public Prosecutor's Office in Celle suggested a sentence of one year and six months, while her legal representation demanded a one-year term. The verdict has not yet been finalized.
The court classified the woman as an accomplice due to her involvement with ISIS, leading to a lighter sentence. Her judgments during the trial emphasized her role in the group and her distancing herself from it.
