BAGHDAD (AP) — An Iraqi court issued a death sentence against one of the wives of the late brutal Islamic State leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, alleging that she was complicit in crimes committed against Yazidi women captured by the militant group, the country's judiciary announced Wednesday.
The ruling comes weeks before the 10-year mark since IS launched a series of attacks against the Yazidi religious minority in the northern Iraqi region of Sinjar in early August 2014, killing and capturing thousands — including women and girls who were subjected to human trafficking and sexual abuse. The United Nations said the campaign against the Yazidis amounted to genocide.
A statement by Iraq’s judicial council said the Karkh Criminal Court sentenced the woman for “detaining Yazidi women in her home” and facilitating their kidnapping by “the terrorist (Islamic State group) gangs in Sinjar district.” It also said the ruling was issued in accordance with Iraq’s anti-terrorism law and its “Yazidi survivors law."
The statement did not name the defendant, but two court officials identified her as Asma Mohammed, who was arrested in 2018 in Turkey and later extradited. A senior Iraqi security official told The Associated Press that another wife of al-Baghdadi and his daughter, who were also extradited from Turkey to Iraq, had been sentenced to life in prison.
The sentences were handed down a week ago but were announced by the judicial council Wednesday, he said.
The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the case publicly.
Survivors of the IS attacks in Iraq have complained of a lack of accountability and have criticized the decision — made at the request of the Iraqi government — to wind down a U.N. probe into IS crimes, including the alleged use of chemical weapons.
At the same time, human rights groups have raised concerns about the lack of due process in trials of alleged IS members in Iraq and have particularly criticized mass executions of those convicted on terrorism charges. Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch have said the confessions are often extracted under torture and urged Iraq to abolish the death penalty.
On June 29, 2014, al-Baghdadi, known as one of the most ruthlessly effective jihadist leaders of modern times, declared the militant group’s caliphate in large swaths of Iraq and Syria. In 2019, he was killed in a U.S. raid in Syria, dealing a major blow to the militant group, which has now lost its hold on all the areas it previously controlled, though some of its cells continue to carry out attacks.
FILE - This file image released by the Department of Defense on Wednesday, Oct. 30, 2019, and displayed at a Pentagon briefing, shows an image of Islamic State leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi. An Iraqi court issued a death sentence Wednesday, July 10, 2024 against one of the wives of the late brutal Islamic State leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, alleging that she was complicit in crimes committed against Yazidi women captured by the militant group. (Department of Defense via AP, File)
The Dow Jones Industrial Average inched up to another record high on a mixed day of trading for Wall Street. The Dow eked out a gain of 9 points, or less than 0.1%. The S&P 500 rose 0.2%, and the Nasdaq composite rose 0.2%. The parent company of the Paramount movie studio fell more than 7% after Edgar Bronfman Jr., the former head of Warner Music Group, abandoned his bid for the company, clearing the way for it to be acquired by the media company Skydance. Treasury yields held steady in the bond market.
THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. AP’s earlier story follows below.
Stock indexes on Wall Street are wavering a day after the Dow Jones Industrial Average set an all-time high.
The S&P 500 was up 0.1% in afternoon trading Tuesday after drifting between small gains and losses for much of the day. The Dow was up 4 points, or less than 0.1%. The Nasdaq composite was up 0.2% as of 3:37 p.m. Eastern.
Semiconductor company Nvidia, with a total market value topping $3 trillion, reports its latest financial results on Wednesday. It rose 1.5%. Wall Street’s mania around artificial intelligence has helped propel a 160% gain for the stock this year.
The parent company of the Paramount movie studio slid 6.6% after Edgar Bronfman Jr., the former head of Warner Music Group, abandoned his bid for the company, clearing the way for it to be acquired by the media company Skydance.
Treasury yields held steady in the bond market. The yield on the 10-year Treasury rose to 3.83% from 3.82% late Monday.
The Conference Board, a business research group, said Tuesday that its consumer confidence index rose to 103.3 in August from 101.9 in July. The results were better than economists expected and could help bolster sentiment that consumers remain resilient, despite pressure from inflation.
Consumer spending accounts for nearly 70% of U.S. economic activity. That has been a strong area of the economy, along with the jobs market.
Best Buy and Dollar General will report their latest results Thursday. That could give investors more insight into where, and how much, consumers are spending.
Most of the companies in the S&P 500 have reported better-than-expected profit so far this reporting season. Several companies rose Tuesday as traders cheered their latest quarterly snapshots.
Hain Celestial Group jumped 17.2% after the company's fiscal fourth-quarter profit topped Wall Street's estimates. Trip.com Group climbed 8.8% after its second-quarter earnings beat analysts' forecasts and the company touted strong travel demand.
Traders also bid up shares in cruise line operators. Royal Caribbean rose 4.2%, Norwegian Cruise Line gained 4.3% and Carnival added 3.6%.
Investors are looking ahead to Friday, when the government releases its latest data on inflation with the PCE, or personal consumption and expenditures report, for July. It's the preferred measure of inflation for the Federal Reserve, which has signaled that long-awaited interest rate cuts are coming.
Inflation has been falling steadily over the past two years after the central bank raised its benchmark rate to its highest level in two decades. The economy has persevered through both inflation and higher borrowing rates, bringing the Fed closer to its goal of taming inflation without pushing the economy into a recession.
Traders expect the Fed to start cutting its main interest rate at its next meeting in September, with up to a 1% reduction by the end of the year.
European markets mostly rose, and Asian markets were mixed.
AP Business Writers By Zimo Zhong and Matt Ott contributed.
People pass the New York Stock Exchange, at rear, on Tuesday, Aug. 27, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Peter Morgan)
FILE - The New York Stock Exchange is shown on Aug. 13, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Peter Morgan, File)
A person stands as a car passes by in front of an electronic stock board showing Japan's Nikkei index at a securities firm Tuesday, Aug. 27, 2024, in Tokyo. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko)
People walk in front of an electronic stock board showing Japan's Nikkei index at a securities firm Tuesday, Aug. 27, 2024, in Tokyo. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko)
A person walks in front of an electronic stock board showing Japan's Nikkei index at a securities firm Tuesday, Aug. 27, 2024, in Tokyo. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko)
