Joint database: EU begins first steps to prosecute ISIS returnees

Shaimaa Hafezy

The European Union has opened a joint counterterrorism database, hoping to facilitate the prosecution and conviction of suspected ISIS fighters and individuals returning from Iraq and Syria.

EU officials said the opening of the joint database would facilitate the prosecution and conviction of Europeans returning from fighting with ISIS, who according to the EU number 1,300 Europeans held in Syria and Iraq.

Officials point out that many Europeans who have fought with ISIS may return and not be prosecuted for lack of evidence, or may be tried on lesser charges if European investigations are not coordinated.

The new database will collect information from all 28 EU countries on ongoing investigations, prosecutions and convictions of militants, as well as facilitate cooperation between prosecutors.

This is expected to contribute to the conviction of war criminals and other militants who could have faced lesser charges or completely escaped from prosecution due to the inability of investigative agencies to gather sufficient evidence against them. It will also collect information on jihadists, political extremists and all militants of different orientations.

Preventing new attacks

“No one can be prosecuted for the same charge twice,” said Ladislav Hamran, head of the EU agency responsible for administering the database, which is also responsible for coordinating judicial investigations between the bloc’s Eurojust countries.

Hamran said at a news conference that the new tool could help prevent new attacks in Europe, as prosecutors will have access to more information about suspects.

Europe has seen several attacks in recent years, including two major attacks in Paris in November 2015 and another in Brussels months later, all of which claimed dozens of lives.

At least 1,300 European citizens – more than half of them children – are being held in Syria and Iraq, EU security commissioner Julian King told Reuters.

European countries are seeking to find a way to prosecute their citizens who have been involved in violence within the ranks of the ISIS terrorist organization. France proposed a new mechanism to deal with the French jihadists held by the Kurds. Through a deal between the French government and Kurdish forces, Paris will provide military equipment for Iraq in return for Baghdad ensuring the prosecution of French jihadists who France does not want to return again, according to the French newspaper Le Figaro.

It is noteworthy that the European proposal for the establishment of the joint database was preceded by an Iraqi proposal submitted to the countries of the international coalition led by the United States for Iraq to prosecute foreign fighters who participated in the fighting alongside ISIS, in return for Baghdad receiving up to $2 billion.

The proposal includes that the countries whose nationals are jihadists should bear the costs of shelter after trial and imprisonment so that the Iraqi budget does not bear undue burdens in dealing with high-risk individuals.