In a significant legal development, a German court upheld the conviction of ISIS member “Jennifer W” on charges of aiding and abetting in crimes against humanity. The conviction came about as a result of the abuse of a five-year-old Yazidi girl and her mother, reported in a press release by the human rights organization Yazda.
The Higher Regional Court of Munich not only upheld her conviction but also extended Jennifer W’s prison sentence from 10 to 14 years. German legal requirements necessitate that her full surname cannot be disclosed.
The court ascertained that Jennifer W. and her ex-husband from Iraq held the Yazidi mother and her child captive as “household slaves” for roughly six weeks in 2015. They regularly violated the victims’ rights by denying food and using physical violence against them.
Additionally, Jennifer W. and her ex-husband forced the young girl and her mother, despite knowing their Yazidi background, to comply with Islamic law practices and take on Muslim names in adherence with their support for ISIS, a recognized Islamic terrorist organization.
According to reports from Yazda, Jennifer W. admitted to all the allegations during the two month-long court sentencing hearings.
Amal Clooney from the Clooney Foundation for Justice commented on the case, highlighting the importance of the decision in providing justice for the victims and their crucial contributions in the conviction of their captors.
The ruling confirms a UN mandate that ISIS executed a genocide against Iraq-based Yazidis due to the group’s religious beliefs. It was substantiated with the ISIS’ takeover of the Yazidi-inhabited city of Sinjar in 2014, where the violence led to numerous deaths and resulted in younger women and children being forced into sexual slavery. The UN deemed this a deliberate attempt to halt the Yazidi population’s ability to procreate and establish families.
It is noteworthy that the verdict of the Higher Regional Court of Munich occurs amidst the conviction of three other German ISIS members accused of executing crimes against humanity towards members of the Yazidi religious community.
To read more about this case, check out the full original article here.