Indictment Filed on Counts of Membership in the Foreign Terrorist Organisation ‘Liwa al-Tawhid’

Year of issue 2024
Date 24.01.2024

On 28 December 2023, the Federal Public Prosecutor’s Office filed charges against the Syrian nationals

Muhamad R.,
Anas K. and
Youssef K.

before the State Security Chamber of the Berlin Higher Regional Court.

The accused are alleged to have acted as members of a foreign terrorist organisation (section 129b para. 1 in conjunction with section 129a para. 1 no. 1 of the German Criminal Code (StGB)).

In essence, the indictment sets out the following facts:

The ‘Liwa al-Tawhid’ (‘Brigade of Monotheism’) was an armed Islamist group operating in the Syrian province of Aleppo between 2012 and 2014. It comprised up to 10,000 fighters. Its objective was to fight against Bashar Al-Assad’s regime and to establish a Sharia-based caliphate. To this end, the group joined forces with other foreign terrorist organisations in the region, in particular ‘Jabhat al-Nusra’ and ‘Ahrar al-Sham’.

Within ‘Liwa al-Tawhid’, Muhamad R. established and commanded a battalion which he led in various battles. The unit conquered, inter alia, a district of Aleppo and occupied it for an extended period of time.

Anas K. served as ‘Liwa al-Tawhid’s’ spokesperson and reporter. He glorified and publicly promoted the organisation by drafting numerous articles about its activities.

Youssef K. also assumed media-related tasks within ‘Liwa al-Tawhid.’ He accompanied Anas K. to combat zones on a regular basis and drafted reports, recorded video footage and took photographs for propaganda purposes.

The suspects are not in pre-trial detention.