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Published 14:43 IST, October 8th 2020

Islamic State 'Beatles' appear in court over torture and killing of Western hostages

Two alleged Islamic State (IS) suspects appeared in a US court on October 7 over accusations that they jailed, tortured and killed four Western hostages.

Reported by: Bhavya Sukheja
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Two alleged Islamic State (IS) suspects appeared in a US court on October 7 over accusations that they jailed, tortured and killed four Western hostages. According to a BBC report, Alexanda Kotey and El Shafee Elsheikh are accused of belonging to an ISIS cell, dubbed ‘The Beatles’, which was involved in the kidnappings in Iraq and Syria. The two suspects appeared via video call from prison at a hearing in a federal court in Alexandria, Virginia. 

The American government has linked the group to the kidnapping and abuse of over two dozen hostages, some of who were brutally beheaded for propaganda videos. While speaking at a press conference, US Assistant Attorney General John Demers, said that the charges were ‘the result of many years of hard work in pursuit of justice’ for the four Americans, including James Foley, Steven Sotloff, Kayla Mueller and Peter Kassig, who died. According to the prosecutors, the two ex-British extremists repeatedly beat the hostages they kept imprisoned in Raqqa, Syria. 

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Demers said, “Although we cannot bring back your children, we will do all that we can do: obtain justice for them, for you, and for all Americans.”

He added, “These men will now be brought before a United States court to face justice for the depraved acts alleged against them in the indictment.”

Both the detainees were captured by US-backed Kurdish militia in Syria in early 2018. Back in October 2019, the American military took custody of them amid the upheaval of Turkey’s attacks on the militia, and since then they had been held in Iraq. The pair are alleged to have been members of the ISIS gang, nicknamed by hostages after the 1960s pop group due to their British accents. The families of the victims had pushed for the men to be prosecuted in federal court instead of being sent to the military prison at Guantánamo Bay, where military commissions have proved dysfunctional in cases in which defendants contest the charges rather than plead guilty.

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Maximum penalty of life in prison

The charges carry a maximum penalty of life in prison. The charges they face include conspiracy to commit hostage-taking resulting in death, hostage-taking resulting in death, conspiracy to murder US citizens outside the country, conspiracy to provide material support to terrorists - hostage-taking and murder - resulting death, and conspiracy to provide material support to a designated foreign terrorist organisation resulting in death. 

Earlier, the two men have given numerous interviews while imprisoned. They have reportedly admitted holding Westerners hostage. Any trial now would most likely involve former hostages, especially from Italy, France, Spain and Denmark, possibly testifying and recounting the horrors they experienced while imprisoned by the IS in Syria. 

(Image: @CrimeLdn/Twitter) 

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Updated 14:42 IST, October 8th 2020