Germany charges man with fundraising for Islamic State group

BERLIN: German prosecutors have charged an Iraqi immigrant with membership in a terrorist organization on allegations that he raised thousands of dollars for the Islamic State group, authorities said Friday.

The man, identified only as Aymen A.-J. in line with German privacy laws, was arrested in early January on Germany's border with Switzerland as he allegedly was headed to link up with the organization, intending to fight in Syria or elsewhere, federal prosecutors said.

The man came to Germany from Iraq in 2016 during a wave of migration, primary from the Middle East.

He began to get interested in Islamic State ideology by the end of 2018 and joined the extremist group no later than the beginning of 2020, according to prosecutors.

German prosecutors alleged A.-J. originally wanting to travel to the Mideast to take part in “armed jihad,” but members of group told him to put off the plan and stay in Germany to raise funds.

Between June and September 2020, he transferred at least $12,000 in multiple transactions to the Islamic State group in Syria and Lebanon.

The funds were used to support female sympathizers in Syrian refugee camps and to finance smuggling the women back to the Islamic State group, prosecutors said. The money sent to Lebanon was intended to help get Islamic State fighters out of prisons and facilitate their return to the group, they alleged.

There were no immediate details on when the case may go to trial.