Iraq sentences seven French nationals to prison terms over ties to ISIS

First verdicts in the case of 47 French nationals

An Iraqi court in Baghdad has issued the first verdicts in the case of 47 French citizens suspected of ties to the terrorist group Islamic State (IS). The Karkh court sentenced seven men to prison: six to 20 years of imprisonment and one to 15 years. Under Iraqi law, a life sentence is equivalent to 20 years. Judge Mohammed Salman, delivering the verdict, noted that although membership in IS carries the death penalty, he decided to give the young defendants a chance at rehabilitation. The rulings can be appealed within 30 days; however, as euronews points out, under local law, verdicts in terrorism cases are in any case automatically reviewed by the Court of Cassation.

The charges and the defendants' position

All seven convicted men were found guilty of participating in terrorist acts that threaten public peace and security, as well as of endangering people's lives. The court characterized them as 'particularly dangerous individuals' because of their role in destabilizing the situation in Iraq and Syria. One of the defendants, 33-year-old Mehdi Mohammed, a French citizen of Algerian origin, admitted joining IS but said he had been deceived. According to him, in 2013, while a student, influenced by the conflicts in Syria and by online contact with a man named Abu Mohammed al-Faransi, he traveled to Syria believing he was helping the Syrian revolution rather than joining terrorists. His defense lawyers and representatives of the French embassy were present at the hearing.

Context of the mass transfers from Syria

These verdicts are part of a large-scale trial process that began in Baghdad in late September, in which nationals of 67 nationalities are being tried. Between January and February 2026, the US military transferred to Iraq 5,704 suspects with IS ties who had previously been held in camps in northeastern Syria. Among them were 474 Iraqis and 3,497 Syrians, as well as 47 French citizens, who were the first to be sentenced. The transfer of detainees was accelerated after armed clashes in January between Syrian government forces and Kurdish units, during which some detainees managed to escape.

The question of repatriation and future trials

Iraq's national security adviser Qasim al-Araji had previously stated that Iraq rejected Damascus's request to hand over about 4,000 Syrian detainees for trial in Syria. At the same time, the Iraqi side did not rule out the possibility of sending some foreign convicts to their countries of origin to serve their sentences after the judicial proceedings are completed. However, it has not yet been decided whether these seven French nationals will be repatriated. The French Foreign Ministry confirmed that diplomats will continue to provide consular assistance and support French lawyers in filing appeals, but the final status of the convicted men remains uncertain.