Mother who took children to al-Hol faces trafficking charges

Prosecutors have charged a mother with two counts of aggravated human trafficking after she took her children to areas in Syria controlled by the terrorist organisation Isis, Yle reports.

There are two alleged victims. They were minors during part of the events but are now adults. The woman has denied the charges.

The Finnish-Russian dual national is suspected of taking her underage children to a conflict zone, where they lived in conditions that violated human dignity. The alleged offences date from 2014 to 2021 and from 2014 to 2024.

The Central Criminal Police said the suspect is a woman in her 40s who currently lives in Finland’s capital region. She travelled to Syria with her children in 2014. The family was later confined to the al-Hol camp in north-eastern Syria.

According to the Central Criminal Police, the woman returned to Finland with one child in late 2021. Her other child returned later.

Aggravated human trafficking carries a prison sentence of between two and 10 years. The offence may be considered aggravated, for example, when violence is used, serious bodily harm is caused or the crime targets a child under 18.