An Albertan who fought in Syria for months alongside the Islamic State (IS) was sentenced Thursday to twelve years in prison.
Hussein Sobhe Borhot, 36, pleaded guilty last week to participating in an activity of a terrorist group and to offenses for the benefit of a terrorist group. He admitted to having participated in a kidnapping. In 2013, he traveled from Canada to Syria to fight with the armed group Islamic State. He stayed there for a year.
Judge David Labrenz of the Alberta Court of Queen’s Bench sentenced him to eight years in prison for contributing to terrorist activities and four years for kidnapping. He will also be subject to a DNA sampling order and a firearms prohibition order for a period of ten years following his release.
“These sentences send a clear message of deterrence and denunciation. Those who leave Canada to commit acts of terrorism, anywhere in the world, will be held accountable by Canadian authorities. Deterring and exposing terrorism, wherever it occurs, protects all citizens, both in Canada and abroad,” Kent Brown, federal prosecutor in charge, said in a press release Thursday.