Advancing Justice and Accountability: Trial Against Belgian ISIS Member Begins in Brussels
From November 6 to 14, 2025, the trial of ISIS member and Belgian national Sammy Djedou, also known by his alias Abu Moussab al-Belgiki, will take place in Brussels, Belgium at the Assize Court, the highest Belgian court with criminal jurisdiction for the most serious offenses. Nadia’s Initiative and its staff are providing logistical support in coordination with investigators, the prosecutor’s office, and witnesses before, during, and after the proceedings.
Several witnesses taking the stand in Brussels are Yazidi women who endured sexual, physical, and psychological violence while being held captive in the home of ISIS fighter Sammy Djedou between August 2014 and December 2016. The indictment draws on extensive evidence and witness testimonies documenting Djedou’s involvement in the sexual enslavement of Yazidi women and his participation in the broader activities of ISIS. He faces charges of genocide and crimes against humanity under the International Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide and corresponding provisions of the Belgian Penal Code.
When ISIS attacked the Yazidi community, they pursued a deliberate long-term strategy that targeted women and girls with particular brutality. Following patterns seen among some of history’s worst atrocities, ISIS used sexual violence as a weapon of war – a tactic intended to dismantle the Yazidi community from within and to inflict lasting, intergenerational trauma. This systematic violence was not only an assault on individuals, but on the very fabric of Yazidi society. It was an attempt to destroy its social bonds, erase its identity, and break its collective resilience.
During the trial, Nadia Murad provided testimony, underscoring the duty of states and judicial institutions to hold ISIS members accountable and prevent future atrocities. She said:
Given the role that foreign fighters knowingly played in the crimes committed by ISIS against Yazidis, my hope is that countries like Belgium take seriously their responsibility to hold their citizens accountable. My hope is that courts like this one understand that justice and accountability are the only path to preventing such atrocities from happening in the future. Impunity is not an option. We must seize every opportunity to hold those who commit crimes against humanity and trade in women and girls to account.
A crucial aspect of the pursuit of justice in this case is the “United Nations Investigative Team to Promote Accountability for Crimes Committed by Da’esh/ISIL” (UNITAD), established to collect and preserve evidence of war crimes, crimes against humanity, and genocide in Iraq. Since its creation, UNITAD’s work – together with documentation provided by human rights organizations, journalists, and survivors themselves – has been instrumental in uncovering the truth, identifying victims, and ensuring that perpetrators like Sammy Djedou are brought to justice.
While UNITAD’s mandate has now expired, the evidence it gathered remains essential for advancing accountability. Nadia’s Initiative continues to work with partners and UN member states to ensure that this body of evidence remains accessible and that new mechanisms are established to support prosecutions of ISIS members and their enablers.
The ongoing trial in Brussels marks a meaningful step toward accountability. It is a reminder that justice for survivors of the Yazidi Genocide must not be delayed or denied, and that the pursuit of truth must continue, irrespective of time, place, or circumstance.
