The Stockholm District Court has sentenced Lina Ishaq for holding captive and enslaving Yazidi women and children while she was a member of ISIS. This landmark case marks the first instance of IS crimes against Yazidis being prosecuted in Sweden.
Swedish Woman Sentenced to 12 Years in Prison for Genocide Against Yazidis
Swedish Woman Sentenced to 12 Years in Prison for Genocide Against Yazidis
Lina Ishaq, a 52-year-old Swedish woman, faces a 12-year prison sentence for committing genocide and war crimes as part of the Islamic State's violent campaign against the Yazidi community in Syria.
In a historic ruling, a Swedish woman, Lina Ishaq, has been sentenced to 12 years for her involvement in genocide and war crimes against the Yazidi people while serving with the Islamic State (IS) in Syria. The 52-year-old was convicted of holding three Yazidi women and six Yazidi children as slaves in Raqqa from 2014 to 2016, making this the first trial in Sweden related to IS's atrocities against the Yazidi community.
Ishaq's affiliation with IS began in 2013 when she moved her family to Syria. She is already serving sentences for previous offenses, including taking her two-year-old son to IS-held territory and failing to prevent her 12-year-old son from becoming a child soldier, who ultimately died in 2017 at the age of 16.
During her time with IS, Ishaq forced her captives to wear a veil and convert to Islam under threat of violence, maintaining their enslavement independently. The presiding judge, Maria Ulfsdotter Klang, highlighted Ishaq's significant role in the systematic exploitation and trafficking of Yazidi women and children, which was a hallmark of IS's genocidal campaign.
The attack against Yazidis began in August 2014, leading to approximately 5,000 deaths and the displacement of around 400,000 individuals from their homes. Over 6,000 Yazidis were captured and subjected to horrific treatment, including torture and sexual violence as part of an extermination strategy, according to UN reports.
Ishaq was born in Iraq to a Christian family before relocating to Sweden, where she later converted to Islam. She was among approximately 300 Swedish nationals, including many women, who traveled to Syria to join IS. After IS began to lose its territorial grip in 2017, Ishaq fled Raqqa to Turkey, where she was subsequently extradited to Sweden in 2020.
The conviction has been seen as a step toward rebuilding trust between the Yazidi community in Sweden and local authorities. Dawood Khalaf, chairman of the Yazidi association in Skaraborg, noted that the prosecution has encouraged members of the Yazidi community to speak up against such atrocities. While Ishaq's lawyer has indicated a possible appeal, she continues to deny the charges against her.
Ishaq's affiliation with IS began in 2013 when she moved her family to Syria. She is already serving sentences for previous offenses, including taking her two-year-old son to IS-held territory and failing to prevent her 12-year-old son from becoming a child soldier, who ultimately died in 2017 at the age of 16.
During her time with IS, Ishaq forced her captives to wear a veil and convert to Islam under threat of violence, maintaining their enslavement independently. The presiding judge, Maria Ulfsdotter Klang, highlighted Ishaq's significant role in the systematic exploitation and trafficking of Yazidi women and children, which was a hallmark of IS's genocidal campaign.
The attack against Yazidis began in August 2014, leading to approximately 5,000 deaths and the displacement of around 400,000 individuals from their homes. Over 6,000 Yazidis were captured and subjected to horrific treatment, including torture and sexual violence as part of an extermination strategy, according to UN reports.
Ishaq was born in Iraq to a Christian family before relocating to Sweden, where she later converted to Islam. She was among approximately 300 Swedish nationals, including many women, who traveled to Syria to join IS. After IS began to lose its territorial grip in 2017, Ishaq fled Raqqa to Turkey, where she was subsequently extradited to Sweden in 2020.
The conviction has been seen as a step toward rebuilding trust between the Yazidi community in Sweden and local authorities. Dawood Khalaf, chairman of the Yazidi association in Skaraborg, noted that the prosecution has encouraged members of the Yazidi community to speak up against such atrocities. While Ishaq's lawyer has indicated a possible appeal, she continues to deny the charges against her.
