Prosecutors in Suede said on Tuesday that they had charged a Swedish sentenced for his alleged role in the 2014 capture and execution of a Jordanian pilot by the “Islamic State” (Is) militant group in Syria.
The suspect is accused of having helped to force the pilot in a metal cage in front of one of the most infamous murders of the jihadist group.
What do we know about the case?
The 32 -year -old Swedish citizen, Osama K., from the city of Malmo, is suspected of having helped to execute a captured Jordanian pilot while he is fighting.
Prosecutors said the suspect should be accused of aggravated war crimes and terrorist crimes committed in Syria. They were unable to determine the exact day of the murder, but the probe identified the location where it took place.
“The investigation has shown that the man, armed and masked, with others, forced the pilot in a metal cage,” said the prosecutors. “The cage was then burnt down by one of the co-performers, and the pilot died as a result of the fire.”
“This bestial murder, in which a prisoner was burned alive in a cage, was staged in a carefully produced video that was broadcast in the world.
The accused’s lawyer, Petra Eklund, told the AFP news agency that his client had admitted to be present on the scene but challenged the allegation.
“He admits that he was present at this place at the event but does not claim to have acted in the manner described by prosecutors in the fact of the facts,” she said.
The Royal Jordanian Air Force pilot was captured by the Islamic State after his jet was shot down near Raqqa – the de facto capital of the self -declared “caliphate” of the IS – December 24, 2014.
The images of death were scattered by the Djihadi group.
Involvement in Paris, Brussels attacks
K. joined the Islamic State in Syria in 2014 and returned to Europe, prosecutors said. In 2022, he was sentenced to France to 30 years in prison for complicity during the Paris attacks in November 2015 which left 130 dead.
In 2023, he was sentenced to life in Belgium for his role in the 2016 Brussels attacks which killed 32 people.
France agreed on March 12 to hand over K. to Sweden for nine months to allow an investigation and a trial. He will be returned to France thereafter to continue to serve his sentence.
The procedure should start on June 4 at the Stockholm District Court.
Edited by Sean Sinico
