French ISIS Extremist Thomas Barnouin Expresses Regret in Iraqi Court

Thomas Barnouin, a Frenchman with a long history as an extremist dating back to the 2000s, appeared in an Iraqi court on Sunday, expressing remorse for joining ISIS. He was captured by Kurdish forces in Syria nearly nine years ago and is among 47 French detainees transferred to Iraq last year. Barnouin, 45, is the first of these French detainees to face trial whose extremist involvement began during the Iraqi insurgency of the 2000s, signaling a new phase in the prosecution of French ISIS members. Ten other French nationals received lengthy prison sentences just last week.

Barnouin, who is of Christian origin and whose parents were teachers from Toulouse, pleaded guilty at the Karkh Criminal Court to membership in ISIS and engaging in terrorist acts that threatened public safety and endangered lives. Speaking from a defendant's cage, he stated that he was drawn to Syria by propaganda concerning the conflict against Bashar Al Assad. "In 2012 the propaganda was strong to fight against Bashar Al Assad within factions like Jabhat Al Nusra and Ahrar Al Sham," he testified, dressed in an orange prison jumpsuit. "As we see it, it is a religious duty as a Muslim to defend your religion."

He traveled to Syria in 2014 to join ISIS and was initially stationed in Latakia, where conflict was ongoing against the Assad government and other groups. Under the codename Abu Ahmed Al Faransi, he received training in Sharia law and military tactics. By mid-2014, he was assigned to the translation department of Al Hayat Media Centre in Raqqa province, a key propaganda division of ISIS. Similar to other French defendants recently appearing before the same court, Barnouin attempted to distance himself from the group's atrocities. "There were assassinations and disputes inside the organisation. They were operating by the law of the jungle, not the law of God. I am convinced by this statement and not because I am in front of the court," he asserted. He claimed to have been arrested by ISIS on multiple occasions for criticizing the organization, leading to his transfer to another province as punishment. "I started reading the whole system anew and with new eyes," he told the judge, eventually working as an imam in Al Mayadeen. He also commented, "Many foreigners came to Syria for the Syrian cause, and we were ignorant of many things on the ground.".

Barnouin belongs to an earlier generation of extremists compared to most of the 47 French citizens transferred to Iraq from Syria last year, who were largely radicalized around 2013 or 2014. He informed the court that he had been influenced by Wahhabism and Salafist ideology since the late 1990s, converting to Islam around 2000. French intelligence services first flagged him in Toulouse in 2002. In 2006, he departed France to pursue studies in theology, jurisprudence, and Arabic in Madinah, Saudi Arabia. Instead of returning to France, he entered Syria via Jordan and attempted to cross into Iraq to join an insurgent group, Al Mujahideen Army, to fight US and Iraqi government forces, according to evidence presented last week. Syrian authorities apprehended him and transferred him to French officials. In 2009, he received a five-year prison sentence in Paris, with one year suspended, for his involvement in the Artigat network and for recruiting young men for extremist activities. After his release in 2011, he allegedly re-established a cell in the Toulouse area before heading to Syria. He was captured in December 2017 by a Kurdish militia in Hasakah, near the Iraqi border, along with six other French extremists.

In court, Barnouin adopted a tone of contrition, echoing statements from other French defendants who claimed to have held administrative roles and never engaged in combat. "I carry now my regret and my sorrows. I did not participate in criminal operations, and I condemned them," Mr Barnouin stated. "I deeply regret joining this organisation and I am ashamed before myself and my family and my children," he added. "I lived in this organisation, and I saw it from inside. This organisation used to torture opponents. I know the crimes of this organisation – it has no religion and no morals." He also raised questions about his transfer to Iraq and his trial in a country he had not visited in years, following his detention by Kurdish forces. "I spent nine years in detention and did not see my family or call them. I am as good as dead and the cell I am in is like a coffin. Certainly, the treatment here is better than in Syria, but why was I transferred to Iraq? Do I have the right to this question?" he inquired. Judge Mohammed Salman responded, "Iraqi law allows us to try you for joining a terrorist group." A verdict in Barnouin's case is anticipated on November 18.