Trial of French IS returnee highlights a growing focus on the women who came back

Unidentified women at the Roj Camp in Syria, which houses family members of suspected Islamic State militants, 18 February. AP Photo/Baderkhan Ahmad - Baderkhan Ahmad

Courts are increasingly turning their attention to the women who joined the Islamic State armed group in Syria and Iraq, and then returned to France. The latest case opened Wednesday: that of Radia Tahar Aouidate, was one of 23 members of her family to travel to Syria, under the influence of her brother.

Tahar Aouidate, known as Selma, appeared before the special court in Paris that tries terrorist cases, charged with participating in a terrorist criminal conspiracy over her involvement with the Islamic State (IS) between 2014 and 2020, as well as recruiting another person.