Stay up to date with notifications from The Independent

Notifications can be managed in browser preferences.

Dutch court convicts woman for spreading Isis propaganda

Defendant distributed large amounts of propaganda via Telegram messaging app in 2019

Joe Middleton
Tuesday 29 June 2021 10:48 EDT
Comments
Men identified as Islamic State group fighters who surrendered to Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) in February 2019
Men identified as Islamic State group fighters who surrendered to Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) in February 2019 (AFP/Getty Images)

Your support helps us to tell the story

From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.

At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.

The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.

Your support makes all the difference.

A Dutch court has convicted a 32-year-old woman for spreading Isis propaganda.

The Hague District Court ruled that Isis is a criminal organisation with the aim of committing war crimes and jailed the woman for six years for disseminating material from her home near Amsterdam.

The woman's sentence was double the three years originally demanded by prosecutors, with judges saying the sentence request was "far too low".

The woman, whose name was not released in line with Dutch privacy rules, distributed large amounts of Isis propaganda via the Telegram messaging app in 2019.

She shared two videos of prisoners of war being killed and provided her own "humiliating" commentary for one of the executions.

By doing so, "she abused the personal dignity of the deceased people and that is a war crime", the court said.

It added that she incited others to commit terrorist crimes and war crimes, trained herself and others to make bomb vests and sent money to people involved in terrorist activities.

Spreading propaganda made her "part of this terrorist organisation that is guilty around the world of attacks and spreading fear", the court said in a statement.

As well as the six-year-sentence, she was ordered to undergo compulsory psychological treatment. The court heard that the defendant suffered from a what the court called a "psychological impulse disorder”.

Additional reporting by AP

Join our commenting forum

Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies

Comments

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in