Request for interim measures rejected for 25 French nationals detained in Iraq
The ECHR has decided to reject the request for interim measures lodged by 25 French nationals detained in Iraq.
The applicants, all adults, left France to join the ranks of the so-called “Islamic State”. They were subsequently detained in various detention centres in north-eastern Syria before being transferred, between 2025 and 2026, to a prison in Baghdad, Iraq, where they are currently being held for trial. They are being prosecuted for offences falling within the jurisdiction of the Iraqi courts.
On 17 September 2026 they lodged a request for interim measures with the Court under Rule 39 of the Rules of Court. They primarily sought their repatriation or the execution of warrants for their arrest or search issued by the French judicial authorities. In the alternative, they asked that the French Government take the requisite steps to ensure that they are not sentenced to death and that they receive a fair trial, in particular by requesting the necessary guarantees from the Iraqi authorities.