'Empress of ISIS': US woman who led terror group's female battalion gets 20 years in prison
Allison Fluke-Ekren—a 42-year-old from Kansas—trained over 100 women
Allison Fluke-Ekren—a 42-year-old woman from Kansas, US, who led an all-female battalion of the Islamic State terrorist group—has been sentenced to 20 years in prison.
A federal courtroom gave the sentence in Alexandria, Virginia on Tuesday.
First Assistant US Attorney Raj Parekh described Fluke-Ekren, a former teacher, as the “Empress of ISIS” who “brainwashed young girls” in a mission to create the all-female battalion, reports CNN.
“She became a warped visionary for ISIS… She was attracted to death and destruction,” Parekh said.
The Kansas woman admitted to having committed terrorist acts in Iraq, Syria and Libya over an eight-year period, and giving military training to more than 100 women and girls, including some as young as 10. In June, she pleaded guilty.
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The prosecutors had sought stringent punishment for Fluke-Ekren, arguing that the 20-year sentence—the maximum allowed by the law—would not be enough to punish her.
The woman’s lawyers were seeking a shorter sentence, claiming that she was traumatised by her experiences in war-torn Syria.
According to the court documents, Fluke-Ekren was raised in Overbrook, Kansas, and eventually became a fanatic militant who rose through the ranks of IS.
She had moved to Syria in the early 2000s with her second husband—who is deceased and once a member of Libyan militant group Ansar Al-Sharia and IS. However, she used to occasionally visit Kansas. She has 12 children, according to the Department of Justice.
In 2012, Fluke-Ekren was smuggled into Syria and became an active member of IS, marrying several other militants after her husband was killed in battle.
During the hearing, two of her 12 children alleged they were sexually abused Fluke-Ekren, who "vehemently” denied the allegations.
(With inputs from agencies)
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