Suspected IS returnee on trial in Germany

A suspected Islamic State returnee went on trial in eastern Germany on Tuesday under strict security, reported dpa.

The 22-year-old is charged with membership of the terrorist militia, and prosecutors also accuse her of aiding and abetting human trafficking as well as violations of the weapons laws.

The high-security trial is being held in the city of Halle behind closed doors in order to take account of the "personal rights of the accused," said senior public prosecutor Holger Schneider-Glockzin.

The accused was a juvenile at the time of the offences.

According to federal prosecutors, the suspect travelled to Islamic State territory in Syria at the age of 15, married an Islamic State fighter and kept a Yezidi woman as a slave.

The woman from Saxony-Anhalt returned to Germany in 2020, was remanded in custody and later released pending trial. The trial is expected to last until May.