Iraq frees suspected French militant who served sentence

BAGHDAD: An Iraqi court ordered the release of a suspected French militant sentenced Monday to seven months in prison for entering the country illegally, saying she had already served her time.



Melina Bougedir, 27, was arrested last summer in former Islamic State group stronghold Mosul with her four children, three of whom have been repatriated to France.

Speaking in Arabic, she told the court that she had entered Iraq in October 2015 from Syria.



She said that her French husband was killed as Iraqi forces battled to oust the militant group from Mosul, which was recaptured last July after three years of IS rule.