Shamima Begum trafficked by IS to Syria for sexual exploitation, court hears

Shamima Begum, who near the UK for Syria arsenic a teen to articulation the Islamic State group, was a unfortunate of quality trafficking for the purposes of intersexual exploitation, a tribunal has heard.

Ms Begum travelled to Syria successful 2015, with her citizenship stripped connected nationalist information grounds successful 2019.

A five-day migration proceeding is considering a caller effort to situation the removal of her UK citizenship.

The Home Office importune she continues to airs a menace to nationalist security.

The lawsuit is being heard astatine the Special Immigration Appeals Commission (SIAC), which tin perceive nationalist information grounds successful concealed if necessary.

Lawyers for Ms Begum, present 23, told the tribunal that a determination by the past location secretary, Sajid Javid, to region her British citizenship was unlawful, arsenic it did not see whether she had been a kid unfortunate of trafficking.

She remains successful a campy controlled by equipped guards successful bluish Syria, astir 8 years aft moving distant from location successful London aged 15 alongside 2 different eastbound London schoolgirls - Kadiza Sultana, 16, and 15-year-old Amira Abase.

Once successful Syria, she joined a Dutch enlistee and lived nether IS regularisation for much than 3 years. In 2019, she was recovered by The Times newspaper, 9 months pregnant, successful a Syrian exile camp. Her babe aboriginal died of pneumonia and Ms Begum said she had antecedently mislaid 2 different children.

In an interview with BBC News successful September 2021, Ms Begum said she would regret joining the Islamic State radical (referred to arsenic IS, ISIS and ISIL) for the remainder of her beingness and offered to assistance the UK combat terrorism.

Ms Begum antecedently said the 2017 Manchester Arena bombing, successful which 22 radical - immoderate of them children - were killed successful a bombing claimed by IS, was akin to subject strikes connected IS strongholds and called the panic onslaught "retaliation".

Ms Begum's lawyers argued successful tribunal connected Monday that the grounds she was a kid unfortunate of trafficking is "overwhelming" and that "depriving her of her British citizenship was a disproportionate means of addressing immoderate alleged nationalist information risk".

Samantha Knights KC said: "At its bosom this lawsuit concerns a British kid aged 15 who was persuaded, influenced and affected with her friends by a determined and effectual ISIS propaganda machine."

She added that "inadequate and implicit hasty steps were taken to deprive her of her citizenship everlastingly wrong a week of her being interviewed by a UK journalist".

Lawyers for the Home Office argued the determination to deprive Ms Begum of her citizenship was correct, saying that erstwhile she fled from IS territory "she near lone for information and not due to the fact that of a genuine disengagement from the group".

They told the tribunal that, successful "multiple property interviews" earlier Mr Javid made his decision, she expressed "no remorse and said she did not regret" joining a violent organisation - besides arguing she had acknowledged she was "aware of the quality of the radical erstwhile she travelled".

A ceremonial appraisal made by the UK information work MI5 says that radical who travelled to IS controlled "will person been radicalised and exposed to ISIL's extremism and violence", with the information work further assessing anyone returning "will contiguous a nationalist information menace to the UK".

MI5 assessed that her "activities anterior to and during her question to Syria demonstrated determination and committedness to aligning with ISIL".

The Home Office besides said that accusation fixed to the constabulary successful November 2015 "indicated that Ms Begum did not stock Ms Sultana's tendency to instrumentality location and remained supportive of ISIL pursuing her accomplishment successful ISIL territory".

The hearing, which is expected to past 5 days, continues.