No bail for US woman charged with aiding Islamic State group

HAMMOND, Ind. – A judge has refused to grant bond and release an Indiana woman who is charged with providing material support to Islamic State.

An attorney for Samantha Elhassani says her mental health is deteriorating since her arrest and detention last summer. But the government says the 32-year-old Elkhart woman is a threat to the public. Federal Judge Philip Simon said Thursday that she’ll remain in custody while awaiting trial.

Elhassani is accused of providing tactical gear and funds to Islamic State fighters in 2014 and 2015, despite knowing that the group is a terrorist organization. She denies the charges.

Elhassani says her Moroccan husband tricked her into travelling with their four children to Syria, where he became an IS militant and died fighting. She and the children ended up in a Kurdish detention camp.