A Dutch court sentenced Hasna Aarab, a 33-year-old woman, to 10 years in prison on Wednesday for her involvement with the Islamic State (ISIS) in Syria and for keeping a Yazidi woman as a slave. The District Court in The Hague deemed the gravity of slavery as a crime against humanity warranted a harsher punishment than the 8-year sentence sought by prosecutors.
The court found that Aarab actively participated in the enslavement of the Yazidi woman, referred to only as Z., between 2015 and 2016 while living in Raqqa with her young son and her ISIS terrorist husband. The Yazidi woman was forced to perform household chores and was subjected to sexual abuse during her captivity.
Judges noted that Aarab was fully aware of Z.’s dire circumstances and exacerbated her suffering by ordering her to take care of household tasks and her own child. “She did this, knowing that what happened in her house was part of a widespread, systemic attack on the Yazidi community,” the court stated. “These types of crimes against humanity are among the worst international crimes possible.”
From 2014 to 2017, ISIS controlled large areas of Iraq and Syria, during which time it targeted the Yazidi community, viewing them as devil worshippers. The group killed over 3,000 Yazidis, enslaved approximately 7,000 women and girls, and displaced most of the 550,000-strong Yazidi community from their ancestral homeland in northern Iraq.
In addition to her slavery conviction, Aarab was found guilty of joining a terrorist organization, enabling acts of terrorism, and endangering the life of her young child. Although she faced accusations of slavery from two women, the court determined there was insufficient evidence regarding the claims made by the other woman, identified as S.
During the trial, Aarab claimed she moved from the Netherlands to ISIS-controlled territory in Syria in 2015 with her son in search of a better life. However, she denied any active role in the enslavement of the Yazidi women, asserting that the victims were lying about her giving them orders and forcing them to pray.
Aarab was held in Kurdish detention camps following the fall of ISIS and was repatriated to the Netherlands by the Dutch government in 2022.
