Lina Ishaq Sentenced to 12 Years for Enslaving Yazidis in Syria

Lina Ishaq, a 53-year-old Swedish woman from Halmstad, has been sentenced to 12 years in prison by Svea hovrätt for crimes against humanity, genocide, and war crimes related to her role in enslaving Yazidi women and children under the Islamic State (IS) in Syria. This landmark ruling marks the first time a Swedish court has convicted someone for crimes against humanity connected to IS's atrocities against the Yazidi minority.

The appellate court upheld an earlier conviction from the Stockholm District Court, confirming Ishaq's guilt in holding three Yazidi women and six children captive in her home in al-Raqqa during the winter and spring of 2015. These victims, captured during IS's brutal attacks on the Yazidi community in Sinjar, Iraq, were subjected to torture, forced domestic servitude, religious instruction, and prayer as part of IS’s systematic enslavement policy.

According to Judge Robert Green, Ishaq's actions caused significant suffering to the victims and aligned with IS’s intent to partially exterminate the Yazidi people. Despite her denials and claims that another individual was responsible for the enslavement, the court found sufficient evidence, including investigative contributions from the United Nations' UNITAD team, to convict her.

Ishaq joined IS in Syria in 2013 with her family, asserting she was coerced by her husband. After the deaths of her husband and three sons, she returned to Sweden in 2020 with her two daughters. She was previously sentenced to six years for war crimes related to coercing her son into becoming an IS fighter.

The Yazidi victims belonged to a religious minority targeted by IS as "devil worshippers" and "heretics," with IS aiming at their extermination. The court emphasized that Ishaq’s enslavement of these individuals contributed directly to this genocidal campaign.

Currently incarcerated at Hinseberg prison near Örebro, Ishaq’s conviction represents a significant step in holding individuals accountable for IS's war crimes and genocidal acts. This case sets a precedent for Swedish courts prosecuting crimes against humanity linked to conflicts in Syria and Iraq.