Nine defendants from The Hague district of Schilderswijk have been sentenced to up to six years in jail for their role in a jihadi terrorist group.

Main suspect Azzedine C (33), alias Abou Moussa, was jailed for six years, as were Hatim R (26) and Anis Z (24) who are thought to be in Syria.

The court ruled that six of the group were part of a terrorist organisation and that there was a sustainable alliance between them. However, the judges criticised the police investigation, saying they had made errors in their research online, especially via Facebook.

In addition, only some of the statements put forward by the public prosecution department broke the laws on inflammatory language and incitement to hatred and violence, the court said.

Openly sympathising with jihad is not a criminal offence, the court said. However, incitement to hatred and violence, as well as sedition are punishable by law.

The judges ruled Azzedine C, Muslim convert Rudolph H en Soufiane Z were the main figureheads and were actively involved in recruiting people to fight in Syria. Z, who hit the headlines for his video ‘Oh oh Aleppo’, is thought to have died in Syria earlier this year.

Hicham El O (30) was jailed for five years. He had fought in Syria and is now back in the Netherlands. Rudolph H (25), alias Suhayb, and Erasmus University drop-out Oussama C (19) were jailed for three years, one suspended. Oussama was also banned from accessing the internet.

Hangers-on

Two men were given sentences equivalent to the amount of time they had spent in jail ahead of the trial. Muslim convert Jordi de J (22), who had spent time in Syria at a training camp, and Moussa L (41) were described by judges as hangers-on and not part of the core group.

The only woman on trial, Imane B (26 was given a seven-day sentence for sending an inflammatory tweet. She was found not guilty of membership of the terrorist organisation.

Of the seven defendants who are in the Netherlands, all but one were released from custody as the trial progressed.