Frenchwoman on US blacklist arrested in Syria for Islamic State ties
Kurdish forces in Syria have arrested Emilie Koenig, a Frenchwoman suspected of recruiting fighters for the Islamic State (IS) group who figured on US and UN blacklists, her mother said on Tuesday.
The woman is "being held in a Kurdish camp and has been interrogated and tortured," her mother told Ouest-France newspaper.
Koenig went to Syria in 2014 and three of her children were born in that country.
She was put on the UN list of the most dangerous fighters and a year later figured on a US terror list.
Koenig converted to Islam after marrying her first husband, a man of Algerian origin, who was arrested for drug trafficking.
She learnt Arabic, changed her name to Samra and started wearing a veil. She left for Syria to join her new partner, who was eventually killed.
She appeared in several propaganda videos in which she appealed for jihad "as long as the enemy is around".
Koenig's mother said she wanted to return to France and seek "forgiveness of her family, her friends and her country".
New MEE newsletter: Jerusalem Dispatch
Sign up to get the latest insights and analysis on Israel-Palestine, alongside Turkey Unpacked and other MEE newsletters
Middle East Eye delivers independent and unrivalled coverage and analysis of the Middle East, North Africa and beyond. To learn more about republishing this content and the associated fees, please fill out this form. More about MEE can be found here.
