First U.S. ISIS Woman Trial Goes to Jury

A federal jury in Brooklyn is deliberating whether Halima Salman knowingly received military training from the Islamic State in Syria in 2018, in what reports describe as the first full U.S. trial of a woman accused of belonging to the group. Prosecutors point to video of Salman handling an AK-47, a selfie with an ISIS flag and evidence they say shows she trained with an all-female unit; they argue she pledged loyalty to the group and was more than a passive participant. Salman testified that her father took the family to Syria and forced her into marriage with an ISIS fighter, and her lawyers argue she was traumatized and coerced rather than radicalized. A counter-extremism specialist who worked with Salman said he saw her as more traumatized than radicalized. The case centers on whether the evidence establishes that she willingly underwent the group’s training.