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November 2, 2026
Reporter: Joseph Wilson
BRAMPTON, Ontario — A Canadian woman who was detained for years in Syria after allegedly joining the Islamic State is now on trial in Ontario, marking another major development in Canada's efforts to prosecute citizens accused of supporting the terrorist organization.
A jury in Brampton, Ont., heard evidence last week in the case of Ammara Amjad, a 32-year-old Canadian mother of two who was brought back to Canada from a Syrian detention camp in 2023.
Amjad is charged with participating in the activities of a terrorist group, an offence under Canada's Criminal Code. She has pleaded not guilty, and the allegations against her have not been proven in court.
The case is being closely watched because it provides an unusual look at how Canadian authorities are attempting to prosecute women who travelled to territory controlled by ISIS during the height of the group's power.
Alleged Messages From Syria Form Part of the Evidence
According to evidence presented by the RCMP, Amjad sent a message to her mother in late 2018 while ISIS fighters and their families were surrounded in their final stronghold in Syria.
The message reportedly stated that “Allah has written that victory is near.” Investigators later recovered the communication from a phone seized during a search of Amjad's parents' home north of Toronto.
The prosecution is expected to use communications and other evidence to establish what Amjad knew about ISIS, why she travelled to territory controlled by the organization and what role she allegedly played while there.
The evidence will ultimately have to satisfy the jury beyond a reasonable doubt. Merely travelling to an area controlled by ISIS or having contact with people associated with the organization does not, by itself, establish criminal participation in terrorist activities.
From Canada to ISIS-Controlled Territory
Amjad's case dates back to the period when ISIS controlled substantial areas of Syria and Iraq and operated what it described as a “caliphate.”
Canadian authorities say Amjad left Canada and eventually made her way to ISIS territory. She was later detained by Kurdish-led forces in northeastern Syria following the collapse of ISIS's territorial control.
The Canadian government eventually facilitated her return to Canada in 2023, along with her children. Both children were born after she allegedly left Canada and travelled to ISIS-controlled territory.
Her return was part of a broader Canadian effort to repatriate women and children who had been held in camps and detention facilities in northeastern Syria.
In April 2023, Canada brought four women and 10 children back from Syria. Amjad and another Ontario woman, Dure Ahmed, were arrested under terrorism peace-bond proceedings when they arrived in Montreal.
At that stage, the women were not facing criminal charges. The peace-bond process allowed authorities to impose restrictions while national-security investigations continued.
Amjad was subsequently formally charged in October 2023.
The RCMP said at the time that its Integrated National Security Enforcement Team had arrested her in Milton, Ontario, for allegedly participating in the activities of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant. The offence carries a potential maximum sentence of 10 years in prison if a person is convicted.
Why the Case Matters
The prosecution represents a significant moment in Canada's response to citizens who travelled overseas to join or support ISIS.
For years, Canadian authorities faced a difficult problem: many suspected ISIS members were detained in Syria, but Canadian investigators had limited access to evidence gathered in an active war zone.
The government therefore relied heavily on measures such as terrorism peace bonds, surveillance, restrictions on travel and other national-security tools rather than criminal prosecutions.
In 2023, Global News reported that only one of the Canadian women who had returned from Syrian camps had been charged with terrorism offences at that point. Police and security officials cited the difficulty of collecting admissible evidence from overseas conflict zones.
The situation has changed since then.
Other Canadian Women Have Also Faced Terrorism Proceedings
Amjad is not the only Canadian woman whose alleged involvement with ISIS has resulted in criminal proceedings.
Oumaima Chouay, a Montreal woman who travelled to Syria in 2014 to join ISIS, pleaded guilty in 2025 to participating in the activities of a terrorist group.
Chouay admitted that she travelled to Syria with the intention of joining ISIS and subsequently lived in territory controlled by the organization. She received a one-day sentence, in addition to the 110 days she had already spent in custody, and was placed on probation for three years.
Her case was significant because prosecutors described her as the first Canadian woman captured in Syria to be convicted of terrorism-related conduct connected to ISIS.
Another case involves Kimberly Polman, a British Columbia woman who married an ISIS fighter and travelled to Syria.
Polman pleaded guilty in October 2026 to leaving Canada to participate in the activities of a terrorist group. She had previously spent years in a Syrian detention camp before being returned to Canada in 2022.
Her guilty plea came about one month before her scheduled trial.
These cases demonstrate that Canada's approach has increasingly shifted from simply monitoring or restricting returning ISIS-linked individuals toward pursuing criminal prosecutions where investigators believe sufficient evidence exists.
ISIS and the Role of Women
The prosecution also raises broader questions about the role women played inside ISIS.
ISIS was responsible for mass killings, enslavement, forced marriages and other atrocities during its campaign across Iraq and Syria. The organization also encouraged attacks in Western countries.
Women who travelled to ISIS-controlled territory occupied different positions and did not all have identical experiences or responsibilities.
Some were wives and mothers. Others participated in propaganda, recruitment, fundraising, security activities or other forms of support.
A 2025 Canadian court case involving Chouay highlighted prosecutors' argument that women could contribute to ISIS not only through combat but also through family and community roles that helped sustain the organization and its ideology.
This distinction is important in criminal proceedings because prosecutors must establish the specific conduct and intent of an accused individual rather than simply rely on an association with ISIS.
Canada Faced Difficult Decisions Over Repatriation
The cases also reopen questions about Canada's controversial decision to repatriate women and children from northeastern Syria.
Canadian citizens were among thousands of foreign nationals held in camps following the territorial defeat of ISIS.
For years, the Canadian government resisted calls to bring many of its citizens home, citing security concerns and the dangerous conditions in the region.
Families challenged the government's position in court, eventually contributing to a change in policy.
Canada subsequently helped return several women and children.
When the women arrived, the RCMP and other authorities assessed them individually. Some were subjected to terrorism peace bonds or other restrictions, while others eventually faced criminal charges.
The RCMP has emphasized that Canadian citizens who knowingly support terrorist organizations can face prosecution under Canadian law.
The Challenge of Proving Terrorism Offences
A central issue in cases such as Amjad's is evidence.
Investigators cannot simply prove that an individual was present in territory controlled by ISIS and automatically obtain a conviction for participating in a terrorist group.
Prosecutors generally need to establish the elements of the specific offence, including the accused's conduct and the required mental state.
Evidence can include electronic communications, photographs, travel records, witness testimony, financial records and information obtained from intelligence or law-enforcement partners.
But evidence collected in Syria presents particular challenges.
The conflict destroyed infrastructure, displaced populations and left much of the evidence in the hands of foreign military or security organizations.
Canadian investigators have therefore had to reconstruct events that occurred years earlier and thousands of kilometres from Canadian courts.
A Trial With National-Security Implications
The Amjad prosecution comes as Canadian authorities continue to monitor the threat posed by ISIS and its supporters.
Although ISIS lost virtually all of its territorial control in Syria and Iraq, security agencies have warned that the organization's ideology, networks and propaganda continue to pose risks.
Authorities have also been concerned about the possibility that returning ISIS members could support extremist activity or attempt to radicalize others.
Global News previously reported that Public Safety Canada had warned that Canadians returning after involvement with terrorist organizations could potentially conduct attacks or attempt to radicalize others to violence.
At the same time, security assessments must be balanced against the legal rights of Canadian citizens, including the presumption of innocence and the requirement that criminal allegations be proven in court.
What Happens Next
Amjad's trial will determine whether prosecutors can prove that she participated in ISIS activities at the level required for a criminal conviction.
The fact that she lived in territory controlled by ISIS, communicated with people associated with the organization or expressed support for its cause does not, by itself, determine the outcome.
The jury will have to assess the evidence presented by the Crown and the defence and determine whether the prosecution has established the charge beyond a reasonable doubt.
The case could ultimately become an important precedent for future prosecutions involving Canadians who travelled to conflict zones to join terrorist organizations.
For Canada, the trial is about more than one individual. It represents a test of whether evidence gathered from the aftermath of the ISIS conflict can successfully be brought before Canadian courts years later.
It also illustrates the difficult balance governments face when citizens return from terrorist-controlled territories: protecting national security, holding people accountable for crimes, protecting children caught in conflict and ensuring that every accused person receives a fair trial.
For Amjad, the legal question is now before a jury. She remains presumed innocent unless and until the Crown proves the charge in court.
This article is based on reporting by Global News, the RCMP and additional publicly available Canadian reporting. Allegations described in the case have not been proven unless specifically identified as findings or admissions in court.