A 22-year-old woman has been sentenced to two years of probation after becoming a member of the Islamic State (IS) terrorist militia in Syria. A spokesman for the Higher Regional Court (OLG) in Naumburg said on Wednesday that she was leaving the Justice Center in Halle “at large” about half a year after the start of the trial.

The public was excluded from the hearing from the first day of the trial, since the accused was a minor at the time of the crime and, in the court’s opinion, the protection of personality had to be particularly protected.

According to the reasons for the judgement, the court considered membership in a foreign terrorist organization and a violation of the Weapons Act and the War Weapons Control Act to be proven. However, the court acquitted the accused of the charge of aiding and abetting a crime against humanity.

In 2015, the then 15-year-old accused joined IS and married one of its fighters, the court spokesman said. She identified herself with the goals of the terrorist militia and contributed to their promotion “to the best of her ability”.

Among other things, the young person was employed in a hospital belonging to the organization. She also reportedly owned a firearm and temporarily had “power over a Kalashnikov” – a weapon subject to the War Weapons Control Act.

However, the court did not see sufficient evidence for the alleged aid in keeping a Yazidi slave. The contact with the slave kept by her husband was only “punctual”, the spokesman explained the court’s decision.

The judges gave a positive assessment of the “largely confessed plea by the accused, no previous convictions and a high level of willingness to deal with the crime”.

The spokesman went on to say that the young woman had shown a strong will to resocialize. She is committed “to a very considerable extent” to reintegrating into social life. This includes parental care for their children and their efforts in education.

Years ago, an ARD documentary followed the father’s efforts to bring his daughter back and portrayed the girl at the time as a very naive but by no means malicious character.

This lack of “harmful tendencies” was also confirmed by the court of the now 22-year-old, who took note of the verdict without the support of her family in the courtroom.