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IS’s girlfriend, Shamima Begum, should not be able to return to the UK to fight the decision to strip her of British citizenship, the Supreme Court ruled.
The unanimous decision, with all five judges in agreement, comes six years after the then 15-year-old left with friends to join the Islamic State group.
Home Secretary Priti Patel welcomed the news, saying it “reaffirmed the Home Secretary’s authority to make vital national security decisions.”
Now 21, Begum was one of three students from Bethnal Green in East London who traveled to Syria. The other two are believed to have died in the conflict.
Kadiza Sultana, Shamima Begum and Amira Abase pictured passing through Gatwick security in 2015 before heading to Syria Photo: Associated Press file
Her British citizenship was revoked on national security grounds shortly after she was found nine months pregnant in a Syrian refugee camp in February 2019.
After marrying a fighter from the Islamic State of the Netherlands, she had already lost two children and the third died shortly after birth.
Begum challenged the Home Office’s decision to withdraw his citizenship and wanted to be allowed to return to the UK to make that appeal.
And initially, the Court of Appeals said he should be allowed to return to fight the case.
However, in November, the Home Office appealed that decision to the Supreme Court, arguing that allowing him to return to the UK “would create significant national security risks” and expose the public to “an increased risk of terrorism.”
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Lord Reed said: “The Supreme Court unanimously allows all the Home Secretary’s appeals and dismisses Ms. Begum’s cross appeal.
“The right to a fair hearing does not prevail over all other considerations, such as the safety of the public.”
Also in their ruling, the five law lords criticized the Court of Appeal for making its “own assessment of national security requirements” and ignoring the Secretary of the Interior “despite the absence of any relevant evidence before him, or any finding of relevant fact the court below “.
A different ruling could have been of great significance to the government, which has revoked the citizenship of some 150 British citizens on national security grounds.
Patel’s predecessor Sajid Javid, who made the decision to revoke Begum’s citizenship, said he “welcomed” the Supreme Court ruling.
“There are no simple solutions to this situation, but any restriction of rights and freedoms that this person faces is a direct consequence of the extreme actions that she and others have taken, in violation of the government’s orientation and common morals.”
Begum is currently in a camp controlled by armed guards in northern Syria.
You cannot speak to your attorneys or participate in a video hearing.
Begum spoke to Sky News days after the birth of her third baby in February 2019, she told correspondent John Sparks that “a lot of people should feel sympathy” for her, as there was no evidence that she had done anything dangerous.
Shamima Begum spoke exclusively to Sky News days after the birth of her third baby
But later that year, Ms. Patel swore that Begum you will never be allowed to return to the UK.
Following today’s ruling, he said: “The government will always take the strongest possible measures to protect our national security and our priority remains to maintain the safety of our citizens.”
