Shamima Begum, who left UK to join ISIS, loses attempt to regain British citizenship

New Delhi, Feb 23: Shamima Begum, who left her family in the UK to join cadres of banned ISIS in Syria in 2015, her latest attempt to regain British citizenship, has been rejected by the UK’s Court of Appeal, solidifying the government's decision to strip her of her nationality.

This ruling effectively seals her fate, leaving her stranded in Syria with no prospect of returning to the UK.

Begum gained international attention in 2015 when, as a teenager, she left her home along with two others in London to join the Islamic State group in Syria. Since then, she has remained in the spotlight, particularly after her citizenship was revoked by the UK government on grounds of national security in 2019.

The Court of Appeal's decision follows a string of legal battles spanning over five years. Last year, Begum's appeal against the citizenship revocation was dismissed by the Special Immigration Appeals Commission (SIAC). Despite her legal team's efforts to challenge this decision at the Court of Appeal, the Home Office stood firm in its opposition.

Central to the government's stance is the assertion that Begum poses a threat to national security due to her support for the proscribed terrorist organization, the Islamic State group. The Home Secretary argued that even in 2019, Begum remained aligned with the group and sought to leave Syria only as its regime crumbled.

The specifics of the evidence against Begum remain confidential, as it was presented behind closed doors to protect intelligence-gathering methods. However, government lawyers contend that Begum's decision to join the Islamic State group was voluntary and made with full awareness of its ideology and brutality.

Born and raised in East London, Begum's journey to Syria alongside two friends symbolizes one of the most prominent cases among thousands of individuals caught up in the aftermath of the Islamic State's defeat. Despite her attempts to return to the UK, including applying for "leave to enter" permission, her efforts have been consistently rebuffed.

Throughout the legal proceedings, Begum's legal team argued that she was trafficked for sexual exploitation and that her age at the time of her departure should be considered. However, the courts sided with the government's assessment that Begum's decision to align with the Islamic State group was a conscious one.

Speaking in June 2022 to BBC in an interview Shamima Begum said she was "ashamed" to have joined the self-styled Islamic State group in 2015, when she was 15 years old. In an interview for the BBC Sounds documentary The Shamima Begum Story, Ms Begum said that she felt a lot of regret.”

With this latest ruling, Begum's future remains uncertain, as she remains stranded in Syria with her British citizenship now definitively revoked. Despite her pleas and legal battles, the courts have affirmed the government's decision, leaving Begum in a state of limbo far from her home in the UK.