ISIS bride Shamima Begum should be allowed to return to UK: court

Shamima Begum should be allowed to return to the UK to appeal against the removal of her British citizenship, the Court of Appeal has ruled, The Independent reports.

The former London schoolgirl, who left the UK for Syria aged 15, lived under ISIS rule for more than three years before being found in a refugee camp last February.

Sajid Javid removed her British citizenship shortly afterwards, and the government has used the same powers against dozens of alleged ISIS members to prevent their return to the UK.

Begum’s lawyers appealed the decision, accusing the government of making her stateless and exposing her to the risk of death or inhuman and degrading treatment.

They appealed to the Special Immigration Appeals Commission (SIAC) but it ruled the move lawful and said Begum had not been made stateless in February.

On Thursday, the Court of Appeal granted Begum permission to launch a judiciary review against that decision.

“Ms Begum should be allowed to come to the United Kingdom to pursue her appeal albeit subject to such controls as the Secretary of State deems appropriate,” a summary of the decision said.

In the full judgment, Lord Justice Flaux said national security concerns over Begum “could be addressed and managed” in the UK.

“If the Security Service and the Director of Public Prosecutions consider that the evidence and public interest tests for a prosecution for terrorist offences are met, she could be arrested and charged upon her arrival in the UK and remanded in custody pending trial,” he added.

“If that were not feasible, she could be made the subject of a Terrorism Prevention and Investigation Measures (TPIM) order.”

In a judgment agreed by Lord Justice Singh and Lady Justice King, Lord Justice Flaux said that “fairness and justice” outweighed national security concerns in the case.