New review urges UK to repatriate Shamima Begum, others from Syria

Conditions astatine Syrian al-Hol and al-Roj camps are “inhuman, dangerous, and degrading”, autarkic study says, urging UK to comply with planetary obligations.

The United Kingdom authorities should voluntarily facilitate the instrumentality of erstwhile repentant ISIL (ISIS) subordinate Shamima Begum and others surviving successful Syrian camps and deprived of British nationality, a caller study has urged.

The Independent Commission connected UK Counter-Terrorism Law, Policy and Practice said the existent stance of the authorities towards nationals and erstwhile nationals detained successful Syrian camps was “increasingly untenable” arsenic they were surviving nether “inhuman” conditions.

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“The authorities should facilitate voluntary repatriation for British nationals, including those deprived of British nationality,” it asserted.

“A coherent, humane, and security-conscious repatriation strategy would fortify compliance with planetary obligations and beforehand semipermanent nationalist information and societal stability.”

Begum’s lawsuit lies astatine the bosom of the UK argumentation of revoking the citizenship of nationals who joined equipped groups successful Syria. She near London successful 2015 arsenic a minor, astatine the property of 15, with 2 schoolhouse friends, and aboriginal joined an ISIL fighter. Begum gave commencement to 3 children, each of whom died successful infancy.

In 2019, the UK authorities revoked her citizenship soon aft she was discovered successful a detention campy successful Syria.

Since then, she has challenged the decision, which was turned down by an appeals tribunal successful February 2024. Born successful the UK to Bangladeshi parents, Begum does not clasp Bangladeshi citizenship.

She had admitted that she joined the organisation knowing it was proscribed arsenic a “terror” group, and has said she was “ashamed” and regretted joining the group.

Conditions astatine camps ‘dangerous’

Citing the United Nations, the study described conditions astatine the camps, including the infamous al-Hol and al-Roj camps, arsenic “inhuman, dangerous, and degrading”.

“Many detainees, particularly women and children, are victims of coercion, trafficking, oregon exploitation, adjacent if immoderate person been progressive successful terrorism-related activity,” it added.

According to the commission, betwixt 55-72 UK-linked individuals stay successful the camps and different detention centres, including 30-40 children.

The study said the UK’s “reluctance” to repatriate its citizens, including those stripped of their citizenship, made it an “outlier” among “comparable jurisdictions” and could beryllium to beryllium “counterproductive to semipermanent information interests”.

“Pressure from the US government, which has called for each states to instrumentality backmost their nationals, the alteration successful the Syrian regime, and arsenic different states repatriate, the imaginable of what was referred to arsenic ‘Europe’s Guantanamo’ becoming ‘Britain’s Guantanamo’, whitethorn unit the authorities to statesman returns,” the study pointed out.