Shamima Begum: Runaway IS bride to find out if she can return to UK

Published

9 months ago

February 23, 2024

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Shamima Begum is set to find out if she has won an appeal against the removal of her British citizenship.

While still a schoolgirl in east London she travelled to Syria in 2015 to join Islamic State at the age of 15, before her citizenship was revoked on national security grounds shortly after she was found in a refugee camp in 2019.

After a series of legal battles, Ms Begum, now 24, lost her latest challenge at the Special Immigration Appeals Commission (SIAC) in February last year – but took her case to the Court of Appeal in October.

Ms Begum, who remains in a refugee camp in northern Syria, was represented by Samantha Knights KC, who argued the government had failed to consider legal duties owed to a potential victim of trafficking.

However, Sir James Eadie KC, for the Home Office, said the “key feature” of Ms Begum’s case is national security.

The ruling in Ms Begum’s Court of Appeal case is due to be handed down at a short hearing at 10am on Friday.

Timeline: From Syria to court battles

From departing Gatwick Airport, to awaiting the outcome of various court cases from northern Syria – here’s a breakdown of how Shamima Begum got here.

February 2015

Shamima Begum dropped out of Bethnal Green Academy with friends Amira Abase and Kadiza Sultana, having been missing since December 2014.

On 17 February, they all travelled from Gatwick Airport to Istanbul in Turkey and, once in Syria, Ms Begum married a Dutch IS fighter, Yago Riedijk, and had three children with him – who all died.

Ms Begum was said to be an “enforcer” who recruited other women to the caliphate.

2016

Both Ms Abase and Ms Sultana are reported to have died, but the whereabouts and actions of Ms Begum remained unknown until she resurfaced three years later.

February 2019

That’s when a journalist from The Times found her nine months pregnant at al Hawl refugee camp in northern Syria, having fled eastern Syria, where there was fierce fighting in a last stand for IS.

Sky News interviewed her, and she revealed she had just given birth – and was said to be “unrepentant” about joining IS.

In the same month, Sajid Javid, who was home secretary at the time, stripped Ms Begum of her British citizenship – this decision was controversial, as it meant it could have left her stateless.

April 2019

Ms Begum was granted legal aid by the UK Ministry of Justice to appeal Mr Javid’s decision.

February 2020

In a preliminary ruling, the SIAC ruled the decision to deprive Ms Begum of her British citizenship was lawful, adding Ms Begum was “a citizen of Bangladesh by descent” at the time of the decision.

They also found she could not “play any meaningful part in her appeal and that, to that extent, the appeal will not be fair and effective”.

July 2020

Ms Begum therefore turned to the Court of Appeal in a bid to return to the UK for the main challenge of her appeal to the SIAC.

She was given permission by the court to return to the UK and contest the government’s decision to rescind her citizenship – but the Home Office appealed this decision at the Supreme Court.

February 2021

The UK’s highest court then said Ms Begum should not be granted leave to enter the UK to pursue her appeal. She has since been in custody in northern Syria.

November 2021

In November, Sky News met Begum again. She said she didn’t hate the UK when she left, only her own life, and reaffirmed her keenness to return.

November 2022

Ms Begum once again attempts to win the right to travel back to the UK in a five-day trial at the SIAC.

During the hearing, her lawyers said the Home Office has a duty to investigate whether she was a victim of trafficking before stripping her of her British citizenship.

She was “persuaded, influenced and affected with her friends by a determined and effective ISIS propaganda machine”, they argued, but the Home Office stood by its decision to bar her.

February 2023

The SIAC dismissed that appeal on all grounds, ruling Ms Begum will not be allowed to return to the UK and therefore will not able to win back her British passport.

October 2023

Her case went to the Court of Appeal eight months later, where three senior judges were told the Home Office failed to consider legal duties owed to Ms Begum as a potential victim of trafficking.

February 2024

Ms Begum’s latest result is due, with her legal battle unlikely to end here either way.

What are the arguments for and against her return?

Announcing the SIAC decision last February, Mr Justice Jay said “the real merits of Ms Begum’s case” involved her arguments that she had been the victim of trafficking.

The tribunal found there was a “credible suspicion” Ms Begum was “recruited, transferred and then harboured for the purpose of sexual exploitation”.

Ms Knights and Dan Squires KC argued at the Court of Appeal that the UK has failed to have a “full and effective” investigation into how Ms Begum was trafficked.

However, the SIAC had also found that Mr Javid was not required to formally consider whether Ms Begum was, or might have been, trafficked when deciding to strip her British citizenship.

Sir James said: “The fact that someone is radicalised, and may have been manipulated, is not inconsistent with the assessment that they pose a national security risk.

“Ms Begum contends that national security should not be a ‘trump’ card.

“But the public should not be exposed to risks to national security because events and circumstances have conspired to give rise to that risk.”

From ‘straight A student’ to IS bride

Ms Begum, described previously as a straight-A student, arrived in the city of Raqqa in Syria and married a Dutchman and Muslim convert named Yago Riedijk 10 days later.

They had three children – a one-year-old girl, a three-month-old boy and a newborn son – who all died from malnourishment or disease.

Ms Begum left Raqqa with her husband in January 2017, but they were eventually split up, as she claimed he was arrested for spying and tortured.

She was eventually found nine months pregnant in a refugee camp in February 2019 by a Times journalist.

Ms Begum told the reporter it “didn’t faze me at all” when she saw her first “severed head” and would “do anything required just to be able to come home”.

But she added she did not regret travelling to IS-controlled Syria, saying she had a “good time”.

By 2021, she had drastically changed her appearance – wearing a Nike baseball cap, a grey vest, a Casio watch and having her fingernails painted pink when she appeared on TV screens.

Ms Begum said there was “no evidence” she was a key player in preparing terrorist acts and was prepared to prove her innocence in court.

“The reason I came to Syria was not for violent reasons,” she told Good Morning Britain in 2021.

“At the time I did not know it was a death cult, I thought it was an Islamic community I was joining,” she added.

UK

‘We need help’: Workers say shoplifting is ‘out of control’ as brazen thefts explode

Published

3 hours ago

November 20, 2024

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'We need help': Workers say shoplifting is 'out of control' as brazen thefts explode

A woman casually walks into a convenience store and starts filling a bread crate with goods from one of the aisles.

A shop assistant tries to stop her, but she shrugs him off, undeterred. With the crate now full of items, she leaves without paying.

It is a scenario that is played out day in and day out across Britain, as retailers warn the surge in shoplifting is now “out of control”.

I’m sitting in the security office of a busy city centre shop and I’m watching as a schoolboy walks in and helps himself to a sandwich, stuffing it into his jacket.

Watching with me is shop worker Anton Mavroianu who positions himself by the main entrance waiting for the youngster to leave.

When the boy does leave, Anton demands the item back. Instead of being frozen with fear that he’s been caught, the boy laughs and walks off.

“All we can do is try to stop them,” Anton tells me. “But this is just another day for us.”

A few weeks earlier, when Anton tried to stop a shoplifter who had stolen from the store, the man pulled out a knife and tried to attack him.

This terrifying incident is an example of the very real threat posed to shop workers as they try to stem the tide of brazen thefts.

Shoplifting offences recorded by police in England and Wales have risen to the highest level in 20 years.

The British Retail Consortium (BRC) also reports that theft-related losses cost the retail sector millions each year, adding strain to an industry already grappling with post-pandemic recovery and economic uncertainty.

For small businesses, which lack the resources of larger chains, persistent theft can threaten their very survival.

Ricky Dougall owns a chain of convenience stores and says shoplifting cost his business around £100,000 last year.

“Shoplifting is a huge problem and it is what stops us from growing the business.

“People come in and help themselves like they own the place and when you call the police, most of the time, they don’t turn up.”

Mr Dougall says part of the problem is how this type of crime is classified.

Sentencing guidelines for thefts of under £200, so-called “low level shoplifting”, were relaxed in 2016. That is being blamed for the surge in cases.

An exclusive Sky News and Association of Convenience Stores survey shows that 80% of shopkeepers surveyed had an incident of retail crime in the past week.

The poll also found 94% of shopkeepers say that in their experience, shoplifting has got worse over the last year, with 83% not confident that the police will take action against the perpetrators of retail crime on their premises.

Paul Cheema from the Association of Convenience Stores says retailers are looking to Government to support them.

“I would say officials do not give a s*** about us retailers,” he tells me. “The losses are too big and I don’t think we can sustain that anymore.

“I would urge Keir Starmer to come and meet us and see up close the challenges that we are facing.”

Retailers have responded by investing heavily in security measures, from advanced surveillance systems to hiring more security staff.

But these investments come at a cost, often passed down to consumers through higher prices.

I get chatting to Matt Roberts, head of retail in the store I am in. He worries about shoplifting, but he worries about the staff more.

“I would imagine they dread coming to work because they’re always on tenterhooks wondering whether something is going to happen today, whether they are going to have to try and confront someone.

“It’s a horrible feeling. It’s out of control and we need help.”

The government has acknowledged the urgency of the issue. Home Secretary-led discussions with retail associations and law enforcement are underway to craft a comprehensive strategy.

In the King’s Speech, the government outlined details of a Crime and Policing Bill, which promised to “introduce stronger measures to tackle low level shoplifting”, as well as introducing a separate offence for assaulting a shop worker.

UK

Two-thirds of teens living with fear of violence, charity warns

Published

3 hours ago

November 20, 2024

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Two-thirds of teens living with fear of violence, charity warns

Children do not feel safe, a charity has warned, as a survey finds two-thirds of teens in England and Wales have a fear of violence.

The charity, which surveyed 10,000 children aged 13-17, found that 20% of teenagers have been victims of violence in the past 12 months.

“I think what shocked me most is how this is a problem that affects all of our children,” said Jon Yates, CEO of the Youth Endowment Fund.

“We found that two-thirds of all teenage children are afraid. And that fear is pretty real for a lot of them.”

He said it’s a fear so palpable that many teenage children are changing their patterns of behaviour, or have had it influence their daily decisions.

One third of teenage children – 33% – reported avoiding areas, whilst around 27% alter their travel routes or avoid public transport altogether to stay safe.

More worryingly, however, some say the fear of violence has led to mental health challenges, with 22% reporting difficulties sleeping, reduced appetite and concentrating in school.

Weapon carrying is also a concern for the charity, especially among vulnerable groups.

In England and Wales, 5% of all 13-17 year olds reported carrying a weapon in the past year, but that figure jumps to 21% for those suspended from school and 36% for children who have been excluded from school.

But Mr Yates said “shockingly” only 12% of children who repeatedly commit violence get any sort of support.

“That’s madness,” he said.

Jay*, 23, from Birmingham said depending on your environment, sometimes violence is hard to avoid.

“I’ve had friends be shot, I’ve got friends who have been stabbed, I had a friend die last month to be fair,” Jay told Sky News.

He said it is “damaging” because you never really get the opportunity to “heal”. He is now being supported by the charity Project Lifeline, but says before then it was difficult to find any hope.

“If you don’t have hope,” Jay added, “you can’t really get anywhere. It’s about finding that hope.”

Mark Rodney, CEO of Lifeline Project, mentors at-risk young children and said he has learned that “not only the perpetrator carries the knife, the victim sometimes carries the knife”.

“And not only the perpetrator does the killing,” he added. “The victim sometimes does the killing, because that’s where we’re at.”

He said far too many families ask themselves “is my child safe going to school or coming home from school?” and adds the government must “actually start addressing people’s concerns”.

The report also found that in 93% of cases where teenage children repeatedly harm others, adults intervene with punishments such as school discipline or police involvement.

However, only 12% of these children are offered support aimed at addressing the root causes of violence and preventing further harm.

Mr Yates said: “They go to school, they do something violent. They get excluded.”

He added: “We need to be much better at saying, ‘we’re not going to lose that child. We’re going to keep providing support to them. We’re going to keep providing a mentor’.

“Instead, we let them fall through the cracks”.

A government spokesperson said: “Halving knife crime in a decade is a clear mission this government has set out.

“It is vital to protect vulnerable young people who are too often the victims or perpetrators of this crime.”

*names have been changed