Abu Walaa’s Islamic State Network and Germany’s Counter-Terrorism Prosecutions
Publication: Terrorism Monitor Volume: 19 Issue: 9
(source: dw.com)
A German court sentenced on February 24 the alleged “Islamic State leader of Germany” to a lengthy prison sentence. The trial against Salafist preacher Ahmad Abdelaziz Abdullah Abdullah, better known as Abu Walaa, lasted three-and-a-half-years and provides insights into radicalization and Islamic State (IS) recruitment in Germany in the years from 2012 to 2016. This article’s insights on Abu Walaa and his network are based on his recent court verdict and the memoirs of “VP-01,” Germany’s top police informant, who successfully spied on Abu Walaa and his network. In addition, this article illustrates how Germany’s security authorities and justice system continue to face challenges in bringing terrorism suspects to justice.
German ‘IS leader’ faces verdict
245
BERLIN, Feb 24, 2021 (BSS/AFP) – A German court will hand down Wednesday its ruling in a case against Abu Walaa, a notorious Iraqi preacher believed to be the Islamic State jihadist group’s de facto leader in Germany.
Ahmad Abdulaziz Abdullah Abdullah, better known as Abu Walaa, is accused of being “IS’ representative in Germany” and directing a jihadist network which radicalised young people in Europe and helped them travel to Iraq and Syria.
The Iraqi preacher, 37, is in the dock with three other men in a costly and high-security trial that began in 2017 in the northern German town of Celle.
Middle-East Arab News and Opinion - Asharq Al-Awsat is the world’s premier pan-Arab daily newspaper, printed simultaneously each day on four continents in 14 cities
A German court sentenced 37-year-old Iraqi Abu Walaa on Wednesday
He was accused of leading jihadist network radicalising young people in Europe
Walaa would also help young people travel to Iraq and Syria, home to ISIS
He was found guilty on Wednesday of belonging to a foreign terrorist organisation, helping to plan subversive violent acts and financing terrorism
Three co-defendants were also handed sentences, from four to eight years
The network s recruits included a pair of German twin brothers who committed a bloody suicide attack in Iraq in 2015