Iraq releases alleged French ISIS fighter over 'lack of evidence'

An Iraqi court on Thursday released an alleged Islamic State terrorist of French origin on the grounds that there was no incriminating evidence to convict him, the country’s Higher Judicial Council (HJC) said.

ERBIL (Kurdistan 24) ­– An Iraqi court on Thursday released an alleged Islamic State terrorist of French origin on the grounds that there was no incriminating evidence to convict him, the country’s Higher Judicial Council (HJC) said.

“The Karkh investigative court today released one of the 13 French defendants for lack of evidence,” HJC said in a statement. The 13 suspects were among hundreds of alleged members of the terrorist organization handed over by the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) to Iraqi authorities in late February.

Although the HJC has previously said the number of French nationals was 14, a legal source told Kurdistan 24 one of them had no identification documents on him and was later discovered to be Iraqi.

The HJC claimed that “the investigation [into the French jihadists] lasted more than three months.” The13 French nationals have not been in Iraq for that long a period of time, but the court may have started their investigation in February when Iraqi president Barham Salih had affirmed they could be tried in Iraq.

The released suspect “had entered into Syrian territory legally,” according to the judicial council and that the court “did not prove his contribution to any military operation.” His entry into the embattled country was reportedly “in support of the Yezidi issue,” the council added.

This statement appears to be in contradiction of a previous one by the legal body, issued on March 10, calling all—then, 14—of them “terrorists” of French nationality, with some being of Arab origin, and claiming they had received military and religious training in Syria where they joined different jihadist groups before pledging allegiance to the Islamic State.

The statement did not clarify the current whereabouts of the man nor the status of the other foreign detainees.

Editing by Nadia Riva