Female Emirati student on trial for funding Daesh

Abu Dhabi - The prosecution accused her of trying to join Daesh with being fully aware of the reality and terrorist intentions of the group.

A female Emirati university student has stood trial at the Abu Dhabi Federal Court of Appeals on Wednesday for allegedly joining and funding terror group Daesh.
The prosecution accused her of trying to join Daesh with being fully aware of the reality and terrorist intentions of the group. She was said to have communicated with members of the group via social media through a middleman called 'Khatab Al Emarat' or Emirates' matchmaker.
She is also accused of pledging allegiance Daesh leader Abu Bakr Al Baghdadi over the Internet.
The prosecution also charged her with transferring Dh2,300 to Khatab Al Emarat through a money exchange. She is also accused of creating social media accounts to promote the ideologies of Daesh. She acted as a mediator between the members of the group, who live outside the country, and passed on to them information through these accounts.
However, defence lawyer Hamdan Al Zayoudi contested the investigation procedures saying that they are null and void.
"My client was questioned when she was locked in solitary confinement for a long time, which had affected her psychological state and morale," the attorney told the court. He also alleged that she was subjected to physical and psychological torture.
Al Zayoudi said that his client did not provide any financial support to Daesh, noting that the said amount was just a financial aid sent to a poor Syrian refugee family (a mother and her children), which is deemed a humanitarian act.
Al Zayoudi said that the investigation made by the prosecution stated that the suspect failed to travel to Turkey and Syria to join the Daesh group since her passport was with her father. "That means my client did not try to travel or join any terror outfit as it was easy for her to get her passport from her father. But she did not do that," Al Zayoudi explained to the court.
He went on to say that the area where his client lives in is very close to the Emirati borders with another GCC country, yet she did not think of using her passport and travelling outside because she did not have any intention to join any terror group at all.
"The prosecution failed to produce a tangible evidence, which could indicate that my client had joined the terror group. She also denied pledging allegiance to the Daesh leader," he added.
Al Zayoudi thus demanded the acquittal of his client and asked the court to release her on bail.
The court reserved the case to February 22 to pronounce a judgment.
malzarooni@khaleejtimes.com

• Abu Dhabi