(National-UAE) European prosecutors are toughening charges against women linked to ISIS when they are returned to Europe as evidence emerges of the extent of their suspected involvement with the group.
The charges are a step change in how courts are handling female returnees after a period when victims feared the trials did little more than pitch the women into the spotlight. By elevating the charges to crimes against humanity and war crimes, instead of simply being an ISIS member, the prosecutors are being applauded for delivering a stronger sense of justice to victims.
“International crimes are the most serious crimes and do more justice to the victims than a status crime such as membership of a terrorist organisation,” said Tanya Mehra, senior research fellow and programme lead at the International Centre for Counter-Terrorism, a think-tank in The Hague.
