Investigator Claims Bosnian Suspect Appeared in Jihadi Video

A SIPA investigator, whose name cannot be published because of a court decision, said that people who left Bosnia for Syria published photos on social networks on a daily basis and that investigators downloaded the material and stored it.

The witness said several people, including defendant Keserovic, appeared in a video made by the Al-Hayat Media Centre that was uploaded to the Ummet News website in June 2015.

“Remember the war and the jihad in that war, and the muhajirs [emigrants] who have come. What has the government done for them? They have prepared American prisons for them. That is how they are saying thank you. You have not spoken up against that. Now you have a chance to do it, if you stand up against that lousy government,” said a man in the video, who the witness alleged was Keserovic.

The entire 20-minute video was played in the courtroom. The witness said that some other Bosnian citizens appeared in it, but that according to police findings, they were killed in Syria.

The witness said that, based on what SIPA had discovered, the defendant went to Syria together with two other people in January 2013.

“I examined the returnees, who [said they] recognised the defendant in their statements,” the witness said.

During cross-examination, the witness said that, as far as he knew, the Ummet News page stopped its activities in 2016, while the defence said the page still existed and was active.

When asked by the defence whether the video consisted of several recordings and whether it had been digitally manipulated, the witness said it was a very good video “consisting of several segments”.

Asked if, on the basis of the logo, he was claiming that the Al-Hayat Media Centre created the video, the witness said “the TV station propagated the ideas of the Islamic State”, every language, and that the United States government had declared that it was part of Islamic State.

The witness also told the defence that photos of Keserovic were published on social networks from 2011 to 2013, but he had never seen him in person.

Keserovic is charged with going to Syria in January 2013 and participating in terrorist activities as a member of so-called Islamic State. He has also been accused of publicly inciting terrorist activities.

A second SIPA witness also testified, saying that she participated in an analysis of the ‘Pride Iis in Jihad’ video, adding that SIPA had previously obtained information about the individuals featured in the video. She said that the investigators used photographs for identification.

The witness said she was familiar with the fact that Keserovic was in Syria and had been deported.

She confirmed to the defence that she participated questioning witnesses and that she carried out the identification of Keserovic.

The trial will continue on September 18.