Shamima Begum has lost her legal challenge against the decision to revoke her British citizenship, despite a court finding a 'credible' case that she was trafficked to Syria as a child. The Special Immigration Appeals Commission (SIAC) dismissed her appeal, meaning the 23-year-old remains barred from returning to the UK and is still detained in a camp in northern Syria.
Ms Begum was 15 when she travelled to Syria in 2015 to join the Islamic State group. She married a fighter and had three children, all of whom have died. In 2019, then-Home Secretary Sajid Javid stripped her of her British citizenship on national security grounds, preventing her return to the UK.
During the hearing, her lawyers argued that the Home Office failed to consider whether she was a victim of child trafficking, suggesting she was groomed and tricked into joining the group. Mr Justice Jay acknowledged 'credible suspicion' of trafficking and 'arguable breaches of duty' by state bodies in allowing her to leave the UK. However, he ruled that these factors did not override the Home Secretary's duty to make a national security decision.
The judge noted that the case caused the panel 'great concern and difficulty', but concluded that the Home Secretary acted within his powers. He stated that reasonable people might differ on the threat she posed, but under the UK's constitutional settlement, such sensitive issues are for the Home Secretary to evaluate, not the commission.
Ms Begum's legal team said the case is 'nowhere near over' and plans to challenge the ruling. This is the latest in a series of failed legal bids; previous appeals argued she was made stateless and that she should be allowed to return to the UK to fight her case, both of which were rejected.
