Latest news with #Nemmouche
Arab News
22-03-2025
- Politics
- Arab News
Daesh suspect who held journalists gets life sentence in France
PARIS: A French court sentenced a French extremist to life in prison for holding four journalists captive more than a decade ago in the Syrian Arab Republic. Mehdi Nemmouche, 39, was convicted of having held the French reporters hostage for Daesh from June 2013 to April 2014. The sentence carries a minimum term of 22 years before he is eligible for parole. All four journalists during the trial said they clearly recognized Nemmouche's voice and manner of speech as belonging to a so-called Abu Omar, who terrorized them and made sadistic jokes while they were in captivity. Nemmouche denied ever being their jailer, only admitting in court that he was a Daesh fighter in Syria. From the beginning of the trial last month, he has claimed only to have fought against the forces of former President Bashar Assad. 'Yes, I was a terrorist, and I will never apologize for that.' Nemmouche has said he joined Al-Qaeda's Syria affiliate and then Daesh — both listed as 'terrorists' in the EU — while in Syria. Nemmouche is already in prison after a Belgian court jailed him for life in 2019 for killing four people at a museum in May 2014, after he had returned from Syria. Daesh emerged in 2013 in the chaos that followed the outbreak of the Syrian civil war, slowly gaining ground before declaring a so-called caliphate in large parts of Syria and neighboring Iraq. A US-backed offensive dealt the final blow to that proto-state in 2019. Daesh abducted and held hostage 25 Western journalists and aid workers in Syria between 2012 and 2014, publicly executing several of them, according to French prosecutors. Reporters Didier Francois and Edouard Elias, and then Nicolas Henin and Pierre Torres, were abducted 10 days apart while reporting from northern Syria in June 2013. They were released in April 2014. Henin alerted the authorities after he saw a facial composite of the presumed perpetrator of the May 2014 Brussels attack that looked very familiar. Henin, in a magazine article in September 2014, recounted Nemmouche punching him in the face and terrorizing Syrian detainees. During the trial, he detailed the repeated torture and mock executions he witnessed while in captivity. =Nemmouche, whose father is unknown, was brought up in the French foster system and became radicalized in prison before going to Syria, say investigators. The court also handed life sentences to two other extremists tried in absentia because they are presumed dead. Belgian extremist Oussama Atar, a senior Daesh commander, had already been sentenced to life for the 2015 terror attacks in Paris claimed by Daesh that killed 130 people and the Brussels bombings by the group that took the lives of 32 others in 2016. The other defendant was French Daesh member Salim Benghalem, accused of having been the jailer-in-chief of the hostages. The court also handed a 22-year sentence to Frenchman Abdelmalek Tanem, 35, accused of being one of the jailers. None of the journalists had recognized Tanem, who said he was a bodyguard for several IS leaders and slept in the basement of an eye hospital where they were held hostage, but claimed to have never seen them. But prosecutors argued he was one of around 10 French-speaking Daesh jailers. The court also handed a 20-year sentence to Kais Al Abdallah, a 41-year-old Syrian extremist accused of having helped abduct the journalists and of having been deputy in command in the Syrian city of Raqqa, all of which he denies.
Local France
22-03-2025
- Politics
- Local France
French IS jihadist who held journalists gets life sentence
Mehdi Nemmouche, 39, was convicted of having held the French reporters hostage for the Islamic State jihadist group from June 2013 to April 2014. The sentence carries a minimum term of 22 years before he is eligible for parole. All four journalists during the trial said they clearly recognised Nemmouche's voice and manner of speech as belonging to a so-called Abu Omar, who terrorised them and made sadistic jokes while they were in captivity. Nemmouche denied ever being their jailer, only admitting in court that he was an IS fighter in Syria. From the beginning of the trial last month, he has claimed only to have fought against the forces of former president Bashar al-Assad, who Islamists previously linked to Al-Qaeda helped topple in December. "It's through terrorism that the Syrian people freed themselves from dictatorship," he claimed on Friday morning ahead of the verdict. "Yes I was a terrorist and I will never apologise for that." Nemmouche has said he joined Al-Qaeda's Syria affiliate and then IS -- both listed as "terrorist" in the European Union -- while in the Middle Eastern country. Clutching notes on Friday morning, he cited a range of figures from German philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche to Russian President Vladimir Putin in a speech criticising the "West", especially the United States. Nemmouche is already in prison after a Belgian court jailed him for life in 2019 for killing four people at a Jewish museum in May 2014, after he had returned from Syria. Advertisement Torture, mock execution IS emerged in 2013 in the chaos that followed the outbreak of the Syrian civil war, slowly gaining ground before declaring a so-called caliphate in large parts of Syria and neighbouring Iraq. A US-backed offensive dealt the final blow to that proto-state in 2019. IS abducted and held hostage 25 Western journalists and aid workers in Syria between 2012 and 2014, publicly executing several of them, according to French prosecutors. Reporters Didier Francois and Edouard Elias, and then Nicolas Henin and Pierre Torres, were abducted 10 days apart while reporting from northern Syria in June 2013. They were released in April 2014. Henin alerted the authorities after he saw a facial composite of the presumed perpetrator of the May 2014 Brussels attack that looked very familiar. Henin, in a magazine article in September 2014, recounted Nemmouche punching him in the face and terrorising Syrian detainees. During the trial, he detailed the repeated torture and mock executions he witnessed while in captivity. Advertisement Jihadists presumed dead Nemmouche, whose father is unknown, was brought up in the French foster system and became radicalised in prison before going to Syria, say investigators. The court also handed life sentences to two other jihadists tried in absentia because they are presumed dead. Belgian jihadist Oussama Atar, a senior IS commander, had already been sentenced to life over the 2015 terror attacks in Paris claimed by IS that killed 130 people, and the Brussels bombings by the group that took the lives of 32 others in 2016. The other defendant was French IS member Salim Benghalem, accused of having been jailer-in-chief of the hostages. The court also handed a 22-year sentence to Frenchman Abdelmalek Tanem, 35, accused of being one of the jailers. None of the journalists had recognised Tanem, who said he was a bodyguard for several IS leaders and slept in the basement of an eye hospital where they were held hostage, but claimed to have never seen them. But prosecutors argued he was clearly one of around 10 French-speaking IS jailers. The court also handed a 20-year sentence to Kais Al Abdallah, a 41-year-old Syrian jihadist accused of having helped abduct the journalists and of having been deputy in command in the Syrian city of Raqqa, all of which he denies.
Sky News
21-03-2025
- Sky News
Five jihadists found guilty of holding French journalists hostage
Five jihadists have been found guilty of holding French journalists captive in Syria for the terror group Islamic State. One of the guilty, Mehdi Nemmouche, 39, has been described by the prosecution as "one of the most perverse and cruel jihadists of the past 10 years" with a "total absence of empathy and remorse." "Yes, I was a terrorist, and I will never apologise for it," Nemmouche told the court hours before the verdict was due while denying he held the men captive. "I don't regret a day, an hour, or an act," he added. Nemmouche was sentenced to life in prison, and will serve a minimum of 22 years behind bars. Abdelmalek Tanem was given 22 years and Kais Al Abdullah was sentenced to 20 years. Meanwhile, Oussama Atar and Salim Benghalem, who are both referred to as integral figures in the Islamic State's operations and believed to be dead were sentenced to life in absentia. The trial in Paris heard that journalists Didier Francois, Edouard Elias, Nicolas Henin, and Pierre Torres were terrorised during their 10 months in captivity between June 2013 and April 2014. The four spoke of relentless physical and psychological torture at the hands of ISIS. During their imprisonment, they were forced to watch the executions of other captives and endure beatings while surrounded by the screams of fellow detainees. Nicolas Henin was snatched in the Syrian city of Raqqa with photographer Pierre Torres in 2013. He told Sky News he was just "taken off the streets". During his time in captivity, he met American journalist James Foley and British aid worker David Haines, both of whom were later murdered by the notorious British ISIS militants "the Beatles". "We were a total of 24. Nineteen men held in one cell and five women in another one…and the plan was to start everything with an execution," he says. He remembers the first person executed on the day they arrived was a Russian man, but the murders would continue. At times, their captors also carried out mock executions, dragging their terrified prisoners out for fake beheadings or leaving them in the boiling sun for hours during mock crucifixions. 5:06 "All our captors treated us badly. It is not only about beatings or torture; to keep someone captured in the dark sometimes blindfolded is enough," Mr Henin said. Throughout the trial, Nemmouche has always denied being their jailer, but the four former hostages recognised him. Edouard Elias said he remembers him tormenting them for hours with constant chatter and singing French songs. Nicolas Henin will never forget his face or his manner. "[He's] sadistic, narcissistic, and I would say 'gamer' because for him nothing is serious. Everything is a game. He wants to win everything…he plays with the court," he said. Nemmouche is already serving a life sentence for the fatal attack on the Jewish Museum in Brussels in May 2014. He carried out the killings for ISIS a few weeks after the French journalists were released. "This man, who fancies himself intelligent, is devoid of any human sentiment," Prosecutor Benjamin Chambre said, describing him as a "real sociopath". It's more than a decade since the journalists spent months witnessing and enduring the darkest and cruellest acts of humanity. Asked how he managed to survive, Nicolas Henin paid tribute to his fellow hostages David Haines and James Foley who he says supported him mentally while he was detained. Ahead of the verdict, he called for sentences that reflected the gravity of the crimes inflicted on them. 9:25 And what of the men who seemingly take joy in inflicting such pain and suffering - are they evil? That's what they need us to believe, he explains. "It's part of the game of terrorists to terrorise people. They need us to believe that they are not human. "We have to look for the humanity still in them to prevent ourselves being totally petrified by fear facing them," Mr Henin adds, refusing to be cowed. "I prevent myself from feeling any hatred against them as much as any fear," he says.
Yahoo
21-03-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
France court to rule in IS Syria hostage-taking trial
A court in France is to rule on Friday in the case of a 39-year-old convicted French jihadist charged with holding four journalists captive more than a decade ago in war-torn Syria. Mehdi Nemmouche has been indicted over allegedly holding the French reporters hostage for the Islamic State jihadist group from June 2013 to April 2014. All four journalists during the trial said they clearly recognised Nemmouche's voice and manner of speech as belonging to a so-called Abu Omar who terrorised them and made sadistic jokes while they were in captivity. But Nemmouche has denied ever being their jailer, only admitting in court he was an IS fighter in Syria. From the beginning of the trial last month, he has claimed only to have fought against the forces of former president Bashar al-Assad, who Islamists previously linked to Al-Qaeda helped topple in December. "It's through terrorism that the Syrian people freed themselves from dictatorship," he claimed on Friday morning ahead of the evening verdict. "Yes I was a terrorist and I will never apologise for that." Nemmouche has said he joined Al-Qaeda's Syria affiliate and then IS -- both listed as "terrorist" in the European Union -- while in the Middle Eastern country. Clutching notes on Friday morning, he cited a range of figures from German philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche to Russian President Vladimir Putin in a diatribe criticising the "West", especially the United States. Nemmouche is already in prison after a Belgian court jailed him for life in 2019 for killing four people at a Jewish museum in May 2014, after returning from Syria. French prosecutors have now requested he be handed another life term with a minimum of 22 years without parole. - Torture, mock execution - IS emerged in 2013 in the chaos that followed the outbreak of the Syrian civil war, slowly gaining ground before declaring a so-called caliphate in large parts of Syria and neighbouring Iraq. A US-backed offensive dealt the final blow to that proto-state in 2019. IS abducted and held hostage 25 Western journalists and aid workers in Syria between 2012 and 2014, publicly executing several of them, according to French prosecutors. Reporters Didier Francois and Edouard Elias, and then Nicolas Henin and Pierre Torres, were abducted 10 days apart while reporting from northern Syria in June 2013. They were released in April 2014. Henin alerted the authorities after he saw a facial composite of the presumed perpetrator of the May 2014 Brussels attack which looked very familiar. Henin, in a magazine article in September 2014, recounted Nemmouche punching him in the face and terrorising Syrian detainees. During the trial, he detailed the repeated torture and mock executions he witnessed while in captivity. - Jihadists presumed dead - Nemmouche, whose father is unknown, was brought up in the French foster system and became radicalised in prison before going to Syria, according to investigators. Prosecutors have also requested life terms for two other jihadists who have not attended the trial because they are presumed dead. Belgian jihadist Oussama Atar, a senior IS commander, has already been sentenced to life over attacks in Paris in 2015 claimed by IS that killed 130 people, and Brussels bombings by the group that took the lives of 32 others in 2016. The other defendant is French IS member Salim Benghalem, accused of having been jailer-in-chief of the hostages. Prosecutors have demanded 30 years in jail for Frenchman Abdelmalek Tanem, 35. None of the journalists recognised the French jihadist, who said he was a bodyguard for several IS leaders and slept in the basement of an eye hospital where they were held hostage but claimed to have never seen them. But prosecutors argued he was clearly one of around 10 French-speaking IS jailers. They requested a 20-year term for Kais Al Abdallah, a 41-year-old Syrian jihadist accused of having helped abduct the journalists and of having been deputy in command in the Syrian city of Raqqa, all of which he denies. mdh/ah/sjw/sbk
Asharq Al-Awsat
18-02-2025
- Asharq Al-Awsat
France Tries Five for Holding Reporters Hostage in Syria
Five men went on trial in France on Monday charged with holding four French journalists hostage for ISIS in war-torn Syria more than a decade ago. ISIS emerged in 2013 in the chaos that followed the outbreak of the Syrian civil war, slowly gaining ground before declaring a caliphate in large parts of Syria and neighboring Iraq. The extremists abducted a number of foreign journalists and aid workers before US-backed forces eventually defeated the group in 2019. Reporters Didier Francois and Edouard Elias, and then Nicolas Henin and Pierre Torres, were abducted 10 days apart while reporting from northern Syria in June 2013. The journalists were held by ISIS for 10 months until their release in April 2014. They were found blindfolded with their hands bound in the no-man's land straddling the border between Syria and Türkiye. More than a decade later, jailed extremist Mehdi Nemmouche, 39, is among five men accused of their abduction at a trial to last until March 21. Nemmouche is already in prison after a Belgian court jailed him for life in 2019 for killing four people at a Jewish museum in May 2014, after returning from Syria. 'I was never the jailer of the Western hostages or any other hostage, and I never met these people in Syria,' he told the Paris court, breaking his silence after not speaking throughout the Brussels trial or during the investigation. All four journalists told investigators they were sure Nemmouche, then called Abu Omar, was their jailer. Henin, in a magazine article in September 2014, recounted Nemmouche punching him in the face and terrorizing Syrian detainees. Also in the dock are Frenchman Abdelmalek Tanem, 35, who has already been sentenced in France for heading to fight in Syria in 2012, and a 41-year-old Syrian called Kais Al-Abdallah, accused of facilitating Henin's abduction. Both have denied the charges. Belgian extremist Oussama Atar, a senior ISIS commander, is being tried in absentia because he is presumed to have died in Syria in 2017. He has already been sentenced to life over attacks in Paris in 2015 claimed by ISIS that killed 130 people, and Brussels bombings by the group that took the lives of 32 others in 2016. French ISIS member Salim Benghalem, who was allegedly in charge of the hostages, is also on trial though believed to be dead.
