Mother charged in Finland with trafficking children to Syria

A Finnish-Russian woman has been charged in Finland with trafficking her children to parts of Syria that were then controlled by the Islamic State group, Finnish prosecutors said Thursday.

Finland's National Prosecution Authority said the woman, who is in her 40s and now lives in Finland, faces two counts of aggravated human trafficking over alleged crimes spanning 2014 to 2024. She denies the charges.

A preliminary police investigation said the woman first brought her children to Syria in 2014. The family was later taken to the Al-Hol camp in northeast Syria.

Detective Chief Inspector Jan Aarnisalo said when the investigation was completed last year that the children had been subjected to a life in which their rights to a safe upbringing could not be met.

By the end of 2021, the woman and one child had returned to Finland. The second child returned later. Both children are now adults, though their exact ages were not specified.

The prosecution authority said the charges had been filed with the Eastern Uusimaa District Court.