Iraqi Prime Minister Adel Abdul Mahdi said Feb. 26 that Iraq had received 250 Iraqi Islamic State (IS) fighters from the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF). He further stated that “Iraq intends to try them according to the local Iraqi laws.” On Feb. 24, the media wing of the Iraqi Ministry of Defense justified the agreement with the SDF, stating that by receiving the detainees, Iraq has guaranteed that the SDF will not be able to release them. In addition to the 250 Iraqi IS fighters, Iraq also received 30 foreign fighters and 500 additional Iraqi detainees from the SDF.
Iraqi President Barham Salih announced Feb. 25 that Iraq will also try 13 French IS fighters who were arrested in Syria. Salih did not rule out the possibility of the death penalty. According to Human Rights Watch, this marks "the first transfer of foreign [IS] suspects to be publicly recognized by the Iraqi government, and also comes after many European governments have refused to bring home and prosecute their nationals who joined [IS]."