The European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) has formally questioned the UK government over its controversial 2019 decision to revoke the British citizenship of Shamima Begum. The intervention centres on whether authorities considered if she was a victim of child trafficking before making the move.
Legal Challenge Under Human Rights Convention
Begum, now 26, is stateless and remains in a Syrian refugee camp. Her legal team has lodged a challenge at the Strasbourg-based court under Article 4 of the European Convention on Human Rights, which prohibits slavery and forced labour. The case was filed in December 2024 after the UK Supreme Court denied her permission to appeal domestically.
Judges have sent a list of questions to the Home Office. A key query asks: "Did the secretary of state have a positive obligation... to consider whether the applicant had been a victim of trafficking and whether any duties or obligations to her flowed from that fact, before deciding to deprive her of her citizenship?"
A Case Rooted in 2015
The case dates back to February 2015, when Begum was a 15-year-old schoolgirl from east London. She left the UK with two friends to travel to territory controlled by the Islamic State (IS). There, she was reportedly married to an IS fighter and had three children, all of whom died in infancy.
In 2019, then Home Secretary Sajid Javid revoked her citizenship on national security grounds. This decision was upheld by the Court of Appeal in 2023 and is supported by the current government, which maintains she posed a threat.
Arguments of Trafficking and State Failure
Begum's lawyers and campaigners argue she was a victim of child trafficking and sexual exploitation. Her solicitor, Gareth Peirce, stated it is "impossible to dispute" that a 15-year-old was "lured, encouraged and deceived" for the purpose of exploitation.
Peirce further accused the state of a "catalogue of failures" to protect a child known to be at high risk. She contends that Javid failed to consider issues of grooming and trafficking when making his "precipitous decision."
The legal firm Birnberg Peirce Solicitors said the ECHR's communication offers an "unprecedented opportunity" for the UK to address considerations previously ignored.
Political Backlash and Government Stance
The ECHR's involvement has ignited political controversy. Reform UK deputy leader Richard Tice stated on X, "ECHR can jog on….none of their business …just another reason why we must leave this foreign court."
Shadow Home Secretary Chris Philp said Begum had "no place" in the UK due to her past support for extremists and expressed deep concern over the court's intervention.
A Home Office spokesperson reiterated the government's position: "The government will always protect the UK and its citizens. That is why Shamima Begum – who posed a national security threat – had her British citizenship revoked and is unable to return to the UK." They vowed to robustly defend decisions made on national security grounds.
The case continues to sit at the contentious intersection of national security, human rights, and the UK's obligations towards potential victims of trafficking.
