Shamima Begum, the woman who left the UK when she was 15 to join ISIS, is barred from returning to fight the government's decision to strip her of citizenship, Britain's highest court ruled on Friday.
The government blocked the return in 2019 of Ms Begum, now 21, claiming that she was a threat to national security and exposed the public to a greater risk of terrorism.
Ms Begum travelled with two schoolgirls from Bethnal Green Academy in east London, to Raqqa, Syria, in February, 2015.
She married Dutch convert Yago Riedijk shortly after arriving in ISIS territory and the couple had three children, all of whom died in infancy.
They lived in the ISIS stronghold of Raqqa for about four years before the group lost its grip on territory and she ended up in the Al Roj migrant camp where she is being held in dire conditions by the Syrian Democratic Forces.
She wanted to return to Britain but Sajid Javid, who was home secretary at the time, removed her citizenship to block her return.
Ms Begum won a significant victory in an appeal against the decision in July last year, prompting the government to seek a ruling from the country's highest court.
Overturning the decision, Lord Reed, the president of the Supreme Court, said it “allows all of the home secretary's appeals” and that the previous ruling had made four key errors.
The judgment said the court had not properly addressed security concerns if Ms Begum was allowed to return to Britain. The assessment of the home secretary did not get “the respect which it should have received” given that he had responsibility for such decision-making.
Ms Begum was seen wearing western clothes at the Al Roj camp on Friday but declined to comment on the decision to broadcaster ITV.
Mr Javid welcomed the ruling and said any restriction on rights and freedoms was a "direct consequence of the extreme actions that she and others have taken".
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson on Friday hailed the decision.
"We are pleased with the Supreme Court's unanimous decision. As we've said before the government's priority is maintaining our national security and decisions to deprive individuals of their citizenship are not taken lightly," he said.
"We will always ensure the safety and security of the UK and will not allow anything to jeopardise this."
But rights groups and MPs from the ruling Conservative party warned that the failure to repatriate foreign fighters and their associates could make them more dangerous.
"It is of course tempting to wash our hands of these people," former minister Andrew Mitchell wrote in The Telegraph. "But banning them from Britain or stripping them of citizenship won't make them go away. It may mean we lose track of them altogether."
Ms Begum, Kadiza Sultana, 16, and Amira Abase, 15, boarded a flight from London Gatwick Airport to Istanbul, Turkey, on February 17, 2015, before making their way to Raqqa. The three girls left only months after a school friend travelled to Syria.
In 2019, Ms Begum told The Times newspaper that she did not regret travelling to Syria and was unfazed at seeing a severed head dumped in a bin.
The age of the travellers sharpened focus on efforts to prevent disaffected British Muslims from leaving the country to join ISIS amid fears of a generation of Britons becoming radicalised.
A number of fighters had their citizenship revoked as a dispute between countries continues over how best to handle ISIS activists still alive after defeat on the battlefield.
About 20 British families are in detention camps in north-east Syria, including a number of children, human rights NGO Reprieve said.
Its director Maya Foya said that barring Ms Begum from the UK was a "cynical ploy to make her someone else's responsibility".
"Like many of its European counterparts, the UK is more than capable of bringing home British detainees in Syria, many of whom left as teenagers after being trafficked or groomed online," she said.
Ms Foya said that British policy was increasingly at odds with its allies, with the US repatriating 28 of its nationals from camps in northern Syria.
Ms Begum's husband, who was last year being held in a Kurdish detention centre in north-east Syria, said he wanted to return to the Netherlands with his wife.
MOUNTAINHEAD REVIEW
Starring: Ramy Youssef, Steve Carell, Jason Schwartzman
Director: Jesse Armstrong
Rating: 3.5/5
Mica
Director: Ismael Ferroukhi
Stars: Zakaria Inan, Sabrina Ouazani
3 stars
Some of Darwish's last words
"They see their tomorrows slipping out of their reach. And though it seems to them that everything outside this reality is heaven, yet they do not want to go to that heaven. They stay, because they are afflicted with hope." - Mahmoud Darwish, to attendees of the Palestine Festival of Literature, 2008
His life in brief: Born in a village near Galilee, he lived in exile for most of his life and started writing poetry after high school. He was arrested several times by Israel for what were deemed to be inciteful poems. Most of his work focused on the love and yearning for his homeland, and he was regarded the Palestinian poet of resistance. Over the course of his life, he published more than 30 poetry collections and books of prose, with his work translated into more than 20 languages. Many of his poems were set to music by Arab composers, most significantly Marcel Khalife. Darwish died on August 9, 2008 after undergoing heart surgery in the United States. He was later buried in Ramallah where a shrine was erected in his honour.
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French business
France has organised a delegation of leading businesses to travel to Syria. The group was led by French shipping giant CMA CGM, which struck a 30-year contract in May with the Syrian government to develop and run Latakia port. Also present were water and waste management company Suez, defence multinational Thales, and Ellipse Group, which is currently looking into rehabilitating Syrian hospitals.
Results
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Tips for job-seekers
- Do not submit your application through the Easy Apply button on LinkedIn. Employers receive between 600 and 800 replies for each job advert on the platform. If you are the right fit for a job, connect to a relevant person in the company on LinkedIn and send them a direct message.
- Make sure you are an exact fit for the job advertised. If you are an HR manager with five years’ experience in retail and the job requires a similar candidate with five years’ experience in consumer, you should apply. But if you have no experience in HR, do not apply for the job.
David Mackenzie, founder of recruitment agency Mackenzie Jones Middle East
The Bio
Favourite place in UAE: Al Rams pearling village
What one book should everyone read: Any book written before electricity was invented. When a writer willingly worked under candlelight, you know he/she had a real passion for their craft
Your favourite type of pearl: All of them. No pearl looks the same and each carries its own unique characteristics, like humans
Best time to swim in the sea: When there is enough light to see beneath the surface
UAE v Gibraltar
What: International friendly
When: 7pm kick off
Where: Rugby Park, Dubai Sports City
Admission: Free
Online: The match will be broadcast live on Dubai Exiles’ Facebook page
UAE squad: Lucas Waddington (Dubai Exiles), Gio Fourie (Exiles), Craig Nutt (Abu Dhabi Harlequins), Phil Brady (Harlequins), Daniel Perry (Dubai Hurricanes), Esekaia Dranibota (Harlequins), Matt Mills (Exiles), Jaen Botes (Exiles), Kristian Stinson (Exiles), Murray Reason (Abu Dhabi Saracens), Dave Knight (Hurricanes), Ross Samson (Jebel Ali Dragons), DuRandt Gerber (Exiles), Saki Naisau (Dragons), Andrew Powell (Hurricanes), Emosi Vacanau (Harlequins), Niko Volavola (Dragons), Matt Richards (Dragons), Luke Stevenson (Harlequins), Josh Ives (Dubai Sports City Eagles), Sean Stevens (Saracens), Thinus Steyn (Exiles)
RESULT
Aston Villa 1
Samatta (41')
Manchester City 2
Aguero (20')
Rodri (30')
AL%20BOOM
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The Lost Letters of William Woolf
Helen Cullen, Graydon House
Our family matters legal consultant
Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
MO
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Company%C2%A0profile
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Essentials
The flights
Etihad and Emirates fly direct from the UAE to Delhi from about Dh950 return including taxes.
The hotels
Double rooms at Tijara Fort-Palace cost from 6,670 rupees (Dh377), including breakfast.
Doubles at Fort Bishangarh cost from 29,030 rupees (Dh1,641), including breakfast. Doubles at Narendra Bhawan cost from 15,360 rupees (Dh869). Doubles at Chanoud Garh cost from 19,840 rupees (Dh1,122), full board. Doubles at Fort Begu cost from 10,000 rupees (Dh565), including breakfast.
The tours
Amar Grover travelled with Wild Frontiers. A tailor-made, nine-day itinerary via New Delhi, with one night in Tijara and two nights in each of the remaining properties, including car/driver, costs from £1,445 (Dh6,968) per person.
Sri Lanka World Cup squad
Dimuth Karunaratne (c), Lasith Malinga, Angelo Mathews, Thisara Perera, Kusal Perera, Dhananjaya de Silva, Kusal Mendis, Isuru Udana, Milinda Siriwardana, Avishka Fernando, Jeevan Mendis, Lahiru Thirimanne, Jeffrey Vandersay, Nuwan Pradeep, Suranga Lakmal.
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
