Ugbad and Rahma Sadiq
Ugbad and Rahma Sadiq were some of the earliest Norwegians to voluntarily travel to the Daesh territory in Syria. The sisters were 16 and 19 years old when they left their homes in Bærum in October 2013.[1] They were the subject of a book by Åsne Seierstad, who referred to them by the fictitious names "Ayan and Leila Juma".[2] In 2023, both sisters were repatriated to Norway and, in 2025, they were convicted of terrorism charges.[3] Ugbad was sentenced to four years, and Rahma to two years with one year suspended.[4]
Early life
Ugbad and Rahma were born in Somaliland and moved to Norway with their parents and siblings as children in 1996. They came from a moderate Muslim family and have three brothers.[5][6]
ISIL
On October 17, 2013, Ugbad and Rahma packed their school bags, left home in the morning and never returned. They sent their father an email saying they were going to Syria to help suffering Muslims.[1]
While in Syria, both teenagers married foreign ISIL fighters. Ugbad married Hisham Hussain Ahmed and Rahma married Imran Hersi.[7] The sisters had three children between them by their ISIL husbands. Their father traveled to Syria to try to get them to return to Norway, but was imprisoned and tortured as a suspected spy.[8] Both sisters attended Sharia courses offered by ISIL, and Ugbad attended Quran school and language training under ISIL and taught English.[6]
After the fall of ISIL, in March 2019, the sisters surrendered to Kurdish forces and were placed in the Al-Hawl Refugee Camp. By then their husbands were dead. Their family had not heard from them in years by that point and thought they might be dead. The sisters were later moved to the Al-Roj refugee camp. Witnesses told NRK that both women were part of a group of extremists in the camps who attacked and beat women who removed their gloves, hijab and face covering.[4]
Return to Norway
In March 2023, Ugbad and Rahma returned to Norway with their three daughters. They were arrested upon arrival.[9]
At their trial, the sisters denied having traveled to Syria with the intent to join ISIL and stated they intended to do aid work with the civilian population there, but found themselves unable to leave Syria once they'd arrived.[10] They denied having ever supported ISIL, argued they had been victims of human trafficking and requested a full acquittal.[11]
When Ugbad and Rahma were sentenced to prison terms, the judge stressed that they had spoken positively about life in ISIL and had promoted ISIL's way of life even after the fall of the caliphate, in Al-Hawl.[3]
See also
- Shamima Begum – British-born jihadist
- Aqsa Mahmood – Scottish woman who joined ISIL (1993–2019)
- Sharmeena Begum – Missing British jihadist (born 1999)
- Tareena Shakil – Former English terrorist
References
- ^ a b Abi-Habib, Maria; Jervell, Ellen Emmerentze (26 December 2013). "Jihadists in Syria Draw Children of Muslims Who Settled in Europe" – via www.wsj.com.
- ^ "Two Sisters: A Father, His Daughters, and Their Journey into the Syrian Jihad by Asne Seierstad". Publishers Weekly. Retrieved 23 December 2025.
- ^ a b "Bærum sisters convicted of terrorism". 24 January 2025.
- ^ a b Kurseth, Hedda (6 February 2025). "Den terrordømde Bærum-søstera anker saka" [The Bærum sister convicted of terrorism appeals the case]. NRK (in Norwegian).
- ^ Schaub, Michael (4 April 2018). "'Two Sisters' Leave Home For Syria, Tearing A Family Apart". NPR. Retrieved 24 December 2025.
- ^ a b Kurseth, Hedda (15 October 2024). "I dag startar rettssaka mot Bærums-søstrene tiltalt for å ha deltatt i IS" [The Bærum sisters deny criminal responsibility – claim they were subjected to coercion and abuse]. NRK (in Norwegian).
- ^ "Uten Filter avslører: «Bærumssøstrene» heter Ugbad Sadiq Juma og Rahma" [Without Filter reveals: The "Bærumssøsters" are named Ugbad Sadiq Juma and Rahma]. Utenfilter.no (in Norwegian). 1 February 2025.
- ^ Yassin-Kassab, Robin (21 March 2018). "Two Sisters by Åsne Seierstad review – a journey to join Islamic State" – via The Guardian.
- ^ "Radicalized sisters jailed on return from Syria". 29 March 2023.
- ^ "Sisters indicted for ties to IS terror". 23 August 2024.
- ^ Kurseth, Hedda (29 November 2024). "Forsvarar ber om full frifinning for den IS-tiltalte søstera" [Defense attorney requests full acquittal for IS accused sisters]. NRK (in Norwegian).