Terror trial Two years in prison for 14-year-old IS sympathizer in Austria

A 14-year-old girl who allegedly plotted an Islamist-motivated terror attack has been sentenced to two years in prison without parole in Austria.

The 14-year-old IS sympathizer was found guilty of terrorist association and the crime of criminal organization at the regional court in Graz.

According to the public prosecutor's office, the accused had communicated with a girl in Germany in a chat about a knife attack in a busy square in the center of Graz. The conversation partner was arrested and German authorities informed the Austrian police. The public prosecutor's office did not give any details about the suspect in Germany.

According to the prosecution, the 14-year-old girl discussed the possibility of a suicide attack with a second person. The girl had mentioned a church, a police station or a supermarket as possible targets.

In search of friends at IS

"I wanted real friends who would accept me for who I am, and the people from IS have that," the girl said in court. She had downloaded relevant pictures and videos, but was not a member of an IS group. She had planned the knife attack, but not a bomb attack, she had not wanted to build a bomb, she testified. "I wanted to belong", she explained about a video in which she swore allegiance to the Islamic State. The girl had also shared a cat video with IS lettering.

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The defendant's lawyer argued that most of the accusations related to the time before his client's 14th birthday last May, when she was still of criminal age.

However, the court imposed a sentence without probation. The accused had become radicalized over the course of a year and had "extensive knowledge", said the judge. Imprisonment was necessary so that the girl would not be influenced by a chat or a video again, the lawyer argued. The verdict is not yet final.

SDA