German authorities arrest Iraqi ISIS suspect accused of terrorism crimes

Shafaq News / The Federal Prosecutor's Office in Germany, responsible for terrorism-related cases, has announced the arrest of an Iraqi individual suspected of being a member of ISIS and committing war crimes in Iraq in 2014.

Tthe Federal Prosecutor's Office in Karlsruhe stated that an Iraqi named "Abdul J. S." was apprehended in the city of Wuppertal, western Germany. He appeared before a judge and was immediately placed in pre-trial detention, as reported by DW Arabic.

The statement further indicated that he is "suspected of belonging to a foreign terrorist organization," specifically ISIS, and "participating in war crimes involving murder, mutilation, torture, and other punitive acts without following due legal procedures." The statement did not specify the man's age or his date of arrival in Germany.

According to the arrest warrant, he is charged with joining ISIS in Iraq no later than June 2014. Between June and October of that year, he was involved in two "strict public punitive actions carried out by ISIS in al-Qa'im district."

In one instance, he was supposed to execute at least six prisoners sentenced to death by terrorists. He led one of the prisoners to the execution site and "initiated the execution by firing a gunshot from his pistol." In the second case, he "personally supervised the amputation of the hand of a thief in public."

The prosecutor's office also mentioned that in the fall of 2014, he, along with ISIS members, detained an individual in al-Qa'im, subjected him to mistreatment, and beat him to extract information.

Germany has actively pursued and prosecuted individuals involved in heinous crimes or war atrocities, especially Syrians and Iraqis, under the principle of universal jurisdiction, which allows the trial of certain serious crimes regardless of where they were committed.

The country received thousands of refugees, including Syrians, Afghans, and Iraqis, during the refugee influx in 2015 and 2016.