A British woman who joined Islamic State as a teenager in Syria is not allowed to return to the UK, not even to contest the revocation of her nationality. The British High Court ruled so.
The woman, Shamima Begum, is now 21 years old. She was 15 when she left England with two other schoolgirls from East London in February 2015 and traveled to ISIS in Syria. She is now being held in a camp guarded by armed guards in northern Syria.
The British Home Office withdrew its British citizenship two years ago for security reasons. She wants to return to the UK to appeal this decision.
Public Safety
Last summer, the UK Court of Appeals ruled that it should be given the option to return because it was unable to actually appeal the decision issued by the camp in northern Syria.
The Interior Ministry then went to the Supreme Court, arguing that its return would create “significant national security risks.” The Supreme Court now says her rights were not violated when her permission to return was denied.
According to Lord Reed, Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, the justices reached their decision unanimously, and the government had the right to prevent Begum from returning to the UK. “The right to be heard does not precede all other considerations, such as the safety of the public,” he said.
