An Iraqi court sentenced a Belgian man to death by hanging on Monday for belonging to the Islamic State terrorist group, one of dozens of foreign nationals facing the death penalty in Iraq.
Iraq has put hundreds of suspected members of the jihadist group on trial, many of whom were arrested as Islamic State lost a string of strongholds to U.S.-backed military campaigns throughout Iraq.
The Central Criminal Court in Baghdad handed Belgian national Bilal al-Marchohi, 23, the death penalty for belonging to and conducting operations on behalf of Islamic State.
During an hour of proceedings, the presiding judge read out portions of Marchohi's signed confession and showed a video and photographs that he said proved his membership of Islamic State.
The images from a phone found in his possession at the time of his arrest showed Marchohi carrying a gun and making a hand gesture affiliated with the terrorists. Several pictures showed him cradling his infant son.
Marchohi denied all allegations against him in open court, including that he was a member of the Islamic State group at any time.
"I shouldn't be prosecuted in Iraq," Marchohi said. "I should be prosecuted in Belgium. I am a Belgian citizen."
Judge Jumaa Saidi told the court that the photographs were clear evidence Marchohi was a member of Islamic State.
A translator was appointed by the judge for Marchohi, who spoke in English throughout the trial. He was also given a court-appointed lawyer but had no contact with him during the trial.
Belgian consular representatives attended the proceedings.
The Belgian Foreign Ministry said it had no power to intervene but had made clear to the Iraqi government its opposition to the death penalty.
Marchohi's family, who live in the Belgian city of Antwerp, declined to comment.
Islamic State redrew the map of the Middle East in 2014 when it declared an ultra-radical Sunni Islamist "caliphate" spanning parts of Syria and Iraq and established a regime known for mass killings, sexual enslavement and punishments like crucifixion.
Marchohi is the second of two Belgians held in Iraq known to have been sentenced to death for a role in Islamic State. Tarek Jadaoun, 30, also known as Abu Hamza al-Beljiki, was sentenced to death in May 2018. A senior member of Islamic State, Jadaoun featured prominently in the group's propaganda videos that threatened attacks on European soil.
Human rights groups have accused Iraqi and other regional forces of inconsistencies in the judicial process and flawed trials leading to unfair convictions.
Islamic State captured a third of Iraq in 2014 but was largely defeated both there and in neighboring Syria last year.
