- Zafreen Khadam, 32, from Sheffield guilty of 10 counts of dissemination of terrorist publications
- Called herself Jihadi Princess on Twitter and sent thousands of messages
- Told friends she was going to travel to Syria and 'marry' Jihadi John
- She tweeted 20,000 times expressing support for ISIS in just five weeks
Make-up artist Zafreen Khadam, 32, (pictured) has been jailed for four years after she shared graphic videos of ISIS violence
A make-up artist who sent messages to friends saying she would 'marry' executioner Jihadi John and shared graphic videos of ISIS violence has been jailed for spreading terrorist propaganda.
Zafreen Khadam, 32, from Sheffield used the Twitter handle Jihadi Princess among her 15 social media profiles she used to share and 'like' disturbing images and execution videos.
In one five week period she had tweeted her support for ISIS up to 20,000 times.
Today she was jailed for four-and-a-half years after being found guilty of 10 counts of dissemination of terrorist publications by a jury at Sheffield Crown Court.
Khadam, who had worked at House of Fraser and Harvey Nichols, had shared videos and images of ISIS violence that included footage of a Jordanian pilot being burned alive, alongside the message 'good riddance.'
The court heard she also shared a photo of the beheading of the American journalist James Foley and calls to kill disbelievers' in America and Europe, and had sent thousands of messages about terrorist activities on Twitter, WhatsApp and Kik between February and March 2015.
Khadam suggested in messages to friends that she was going to Syria and would 'marry' the infamous terrorist Jihadi John, who was later unmasked as Londoner Mohammed Emwazi and killed in a drone strike last November.
When confronted by the recipient of one of her messages, who said what ISIS was doing was not in the name of Islam, Khadam replied: 'IS aren't doing anything wrong. I will support them as much as I can.'
Police believe that Khadam may have been planning to travel to Syria.
She wept loudly in the dock and shouted 'no, no, no' as she was sentenced.
Sentencing her, Judge Julian Goose QC said Khadam's defence, that sending the messages and sharing images and videos were a form of research, had been rejected.
He said: 'It is particularly shocking that you made such images your favourites and made your profile open to the internet to see.'
Khadam set up 14 Twitter accounts to share messages about IS activities, creating new accounts as soon as others were shut down because of their content.
Judge Goose said: 'It was only when you were arrested on March 27 that you stopped.
Had it not been for your arrest, I am satisfied you would have continued what you were doing.
Khadam, 32, from Sheffield used the Twitter handle Jihadi Princess among her 15 social media profiles she used to share and 'like' disturbing images and execution videos. She created new accounts as soon as others were shut down because of their content
'You created a note pretending that all of this was research. That document was a deliberate lie to try to bolster your defence.'
He added: 'There is no evidence that your conduct has led to terrorist acts but the nature of the internet and it's global reach means your spreading of IS propaganda causes a serious risk to the public here and abroad.'
After the hearing, Detective Chief Superintendent Clive Wain from the North East Counter Terrorism Unit (NECTU) said officers reviewed hundreds of hours of video and thousands of social media postings, and that Khadam had tweeted up to 20,000 times over one five-week period last year.
Khadam suggested in messages to friends that she was going to Syria and would 'marry' the infamous terrorist Jihadi John (pictured), later unmasked as Londoner Mohammed Emwazi
He said: 'It is clear from the evidence presented that Khadam openly demonstrated support for Daesh and their ideology, using multiple social media accounts to further spread the propaganda of this terrorist organisation.
'Khadam has not disputed posting the information, claiming she did so out of curiosity and the belief that she did not consider it to be terrorist material. Yet this material glorified terrorism and delivered powerful messages, encouraging terrorist acts and calling upon others to kill.'
He added: 'Khadam was prolific in her use of social media and showed little regard for the consequences of openly sharing deeply disturbing images and material across a number of digital platforms.
Much of this material encouraged violent action and was very extreme in the violence it portrayed.'
The CTU said officers were alerted by an anonymous tip-off and found Khadam had been using 15 social media profiles for posting extreme material.
One, with the Jihadi Princess handle had favourited videos including one that depicted prisoners kneeling in cages in preparation for execution and which went on to show one person being burnt alive in a cage and another having his throat cut.
Another portrayed the use of children by IS, including weapons training and youngsters threatening to kill non-Muslims.
The unit said analysis of Khadam's activity on the WhatsApp messaging service showed that she sent a number of IS-produced videos and documents to numerous contacts.
One video by IS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdad which justified terrorism was sent as a data link, advising contacts to watch it before it was taken down.
Mr Wain said his team feared that if Khadam had not been arrested she might have attempted to travel to Syria.
He said: 'The reach and influence of social media is vast. Daesh and other groups are increasingly using the internet to encourage support for their objectives and to provoke individuals to carry out attacks in the UK.
Therefore, tackling extremist material is important to protect the public and prevent offences that incite or encourage acts of terrorism.
'Today's verdict, I hope, sends out a strong message that actions such as those carried out by Khadam will not be tolerated and ourselves, together with policing colleagues and other partner agencies, will bring those who are breaking the law to justice.
'It is also important to reiterate that our priority is the safety of our communities.
We will bring those who have committed a criminal offence before the courts, however we would much prefer to stop people from crossing into a path of criminality.'
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