By Zeynep Yesildag
ISTANBUL (AA) – A convicted ringleader of the terrorist group Daesh/ISIS was sentenced in Türkiye on Monday to over 17 years behind bars.
Istanbul 23rd Heavy Penal Court’s gave Hattab Ghazal Al Sumaidai, codenamed Abu Zeyd and Ustad Zeyd, 17 1/2 years in prison for establishing and managing an armed terrorist group.
Al Sumaidai, who attended the hearing through closed-circuit video, claimed that he had worked as an assistant engineer in Iraq and that when Daesh/ISIS took control of the city of Mosul in 2014, he was not aligned with the terror group.
During the trial, the court rebuffed his plea for his release and acquittal and instead handed him the lengthy sentence.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan last month announced Sumaidai's arrest by Turkish intelligence and the Istanbul police, calling him "one of the senior executives of the Daesh terrorist group."
In 2013, Türkiye became one of the first countries to declare Daesh/ISIS a terrorist organization.
The country has since been attacked by the terror group multiple times, with over 300 people killed and hundreds more injured in at least 10 suicide bombings, seven bomb attacks, and four armed attacks. In response, Türkiye launched anti-terror operations at home and abroad to prevent further attacks.
*Writing by Esra Tekin in Istanbul