In a significant development, an Iraqi court has handed down a death sentence to the former leader of the Islamic State (ISIS) late Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi’s wife, over her involvement in crime against humanity in the country.
The court ruled that the ISIS former leader’s wife, Asma Mohammed, was found guilty of collaborating with the terrorist organization and holding Yazidi women captive in her home.
According to the Iraqi judiciary, the woman was involved in the kidnapping of Yazidi women in Sinjar, Nineveh Governorate, and detained them in her house in Mosul. The Supreme Judicial Council revealed that the woman is currently in Iraqi custody.
The judgement came weeks after Al-Baghdadi’s widow was repatriated to Iraq after spending time inside the Turkey prison after her arrest.
The criminal court sentenced her to death by hanging for crimes against humanity, genocide against the Yazidi people, and contributing to terrorist activities. However, the ruling is subject to ratification by an Iraqi appeal court before it can be carried out.
Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, who was killed in a US special force raid in north-western Syria in November 2019, was the leader of ISIS during its peak in 2014-2017.
Before his death, he declared himself “caliph” of all Muslims and controlled large swaths of Iraq and Syria before the group’s territorial control disintegrated under US-led attacks.
