Iraq hands over 188 Turkish children of suspected Daesh members

Iraq has handed over 188 Turkish children of suspected Daesh members to Turkey in the presence of government officials from both countries and UNICEF, a judiciary spokesman said today.

“The central investigations court which is responsible for the terrorism file and foreign suspects has handed the Turkish side 188 children left behind by Daesh terrorists in Iraq,” said Judge Abdul Sattar Birqdar.

He added that the figure included “a small percentage” who had “come of age” and had been convicted with illegally crossing the border and served out their sentences. Children can be held responsible for crimes in Iraq from the age of nine.

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Baghdad has tried hundreds of Iraqi Daesh fighters, and some foreigners who joined the terror group in Iraq.

Human Rights Watch has condemned Iraq’s approach to foreigners, particularly women and children, accused of affiliation with Daesh, accusing them of proceeding with rushed trials “without sufficiently taking into account the individual circumstances of each case or guaranteeing suspects a fair trial.”

Most foreign women are being sentenced to death or life in prison, with the courts also prosecuting foreign children, ages nine and up, on similar charges, and sentencing them in some cases to up to five years in prison for alleged membership of Daesh, and up to 15 years for participating in violent acts.