UK Court Rules Against Shamima Begum's UK Citizenship Appeal
A UK court rules against Shamima Begum, a woman who left the country to join the ISIS group in Syria at the age of 15. She lost her appeal against the decision to remove her British citizenship.
After a five-day hearing in November, during which her attorneys claimed that the UK Home Office had a responsibility to examine whether she was a victim of trafficking before taking her citizenship, Judge Robert Jay issued his ruling on Wednesday.
Rather than deciding whether or not Begum may return to Britain, the judgment will examine whether or not her citizenship was taken illegally.
Background
Shamima Begum was just 15 years old when she left the UK to join the ISIS group in Syria. She spent the next four years in the country, marrying an ISIS fighter and having three children, all of whom have died. In 2019, she was found in a refugee camp in Syria and sought to return to the UK.
COPYRIGHT_SZ: Published on https://stationzilla.com/uk-court-rules-against-shamima-begum/ by Suleman Shah on 2023-02-23T06:53:42.361Z
Begum met and wed an ISIS member in Syria, and the couple lived for several years in Raqqa. In 2019, Begum reemerged in al-Hawl, a refugee camp in Syria home to 39,000 people.
Begum expressed her desire to return home to give birth to her kid in an interview with The Times published in the United Kingdom just before she gave birth, which she gave from the refugee camp. She said she had lost two infants to sickness and malnourishment before having this kid.
Her son Jarrah was born in al-Hawl in February. After being taken from the camp to the main hospital in al-Hasakah City, the baby's condition rapidly worsened and he eventually died away.
The UK Foreign Office has warned its citizens against visiting Syria since 2011, citing the high risk of child deaths there.
Court Ruling
The UK government had stripped Begum of her citizenship, arguing that she posed a threat to national security. Begum challenged this decision in court, arguing that she should be allowed to return to the UK to appeal the decision and face justice for her actions.
“„The outcome is that there is now no protection for a British child trafficked out of the UK if the home secretary invokes national security.
- Gareth Pierce and Daniel Furner, of Birnberg Pierce Solicitors
On February 22, 2023, the UK Supreme Court ruled that Begum should not be allowed to return to the country, citing the risk that she poses to national security. The court found that Begum has not shown remorse for her actions and that she continues to hold extremist views.
With an appearance in the BBC documentary The Shamima Begum Story and a 10-part BBC audio series, Shamima Begum has made many public pleas against the UK government's decision to remove her citizenship.
The government first denied her entry in June 2019 so she couldn't continue her case, but the UK Court of Appeal said she should be let in the following year.
Once the Court of Appeal determined that Begum should be permitted to return to the UK to carry out her appeal, the Supreme Court overturned that judgment, claiming that the Court of Appeal committed four mistakes.
Shamima Begum loses appeal against removal of British citizenship
Reaction
The decision has been met with mixed reactions. Some have praised the court's decision, arguing that Begum's actions were unforgivable and that she poses a threat to the country.
Others have criticized the decision, arguing that Begum was just a child when she left the UK and that she should be given the chance to face justice in the country.
Final Words
The ruling against Begum's return to the UK highlights the difficult questions surrounding the return of individuals who have left the country to join extremist groups.
While some argue that these individuals should be allowed to return to face justice, others argue that they pose too great a threat to the country and should not be allowed back.
Ultimately, the decision in each case must balance the need for justice with the need to protect national security.
About The Authors
Suleman Shah - Suleman Shah is a researcher and freelance writer. As a researcher, he has worked with MNS University of Agriculture, Multan (Pakistan) and Texas A & M University (USA). He regularly writes science articles and blogs for science news website immersse.com and open access publishers OA Publishing London and Scientific Times. He loves to keep himself updated on scientific developments and convert these developments into everyday language to update the readers about the developments in the scientific era. His primary research focus is Plant sciences, and he contributed to this field by publishing his research in scientific journals and presenting his work at many Conferences. Shah graduated from the University of Agriculture Faisalabad (Pakistan) and started his professional carrier with Jaffer Agro Services and later with the Agriculture Department of the Government of Pakistan. His research interest compelled and attracted him to proceed with his carrier in Plant sciences research. So, he started his Ph.D. in Soil Science at MNS University of Agriculture Multan (Pakistan). Later, he started working as a visiting scholar with Texas A&M University (USA). Shah’s experience with big Open Excess publishers like Springers, Frontiers, MDPI, etc., testified to his belief in Open Access as a barrier-removing mechanism between researchers and the readers of their research. Shah believes that Open Access is revolutionizing the publication process and benefitting research in all fields.
