Propaganda carried out

Suspect charged because of IS past

The 40-year-old is alleged to have distributed propaganda videos for IS in Syria and supervised Yazidi prisoners. The tip-off about the suspect came from Germany.(Bild: AP/Militant Website via AP)

The Vienna public prosecutor's office has charged a Syrian man with terrorist association and criminal organization. Before fleeing, he is said to have fought for the "Islamic State" (IS) in his home country, guarded Yazidi prisoners, spread propaganda and recruited young men.

The 40-year-old Syrian's potentially criminally relevant past - the man is presumed innocent - was discovered last year following a tip-off from Germany.

German investigations led to IS suspects
In May 2024, the domestic Office for the Protection of the Constitution and law enforcement authorities received information from Germany that established a link between the Syrian reported in Vienna and IS. The highest judicial authorities informed the Viennese authorities that witnesses had come forward in a German investigation that massively incriminated the Syrian resident in Vienna.

It subsequently emerged that the man had appeared as the protagonist in an IS propaganda video before fleeing to Europe, German officials said.

Expert opinion heavily incriminates suspect
After further investigations, in the course of which the video in question was also obtained, the Vienna public prosecutor's office deemed the evidence sufficient to bring charges against the 40-year-old at the Vienna Regional Court. The indictment is legally binding. It is based on another anonymous witness who stated that the accused had played IS videos on screens in his store in Syria at the time.

Furthermore, an expert opinion by a court expert, who analyzed the propaganda video with the defendant's alleged appearance, incriminates the 40-year-old. The year 2014 is assumed to be the period covered by the indictment.

Syrian helped IS with the persecution of Yazidis
At the time, the Syrian is even said to have made his business premises available to IS to house Yazidi prisoners and to have carried out transportation trips with female prisoners. IS persecuted the Yazidi religious group with extreme cruelty; according to UN figures, 5,000 to 10,000 people were murdered in the northern Iraqi city of Sinjar alone in August 2014.

Another charge relates to IS supporters who had traveled from Europe to Syria as so-called foreign fighters. The 40-year-old is said to have received some of them and looked after them before they were transferred to IS training camps.

The trial against the man will take place next Friday at the Vienna Regional Court. If convicted, the 40-year-old faces several years in prison.