Shamima Begum, the former east London schoolgirl who joined Islamic State, and other British-linked people who are detained in camps in Syria should be repatriated, a major review of UK counterterrorism policy has said.
The report, by an independent commission, said the current policy of leaving such women, men and children in limbo was “unsustainable” and risked turning the detention camps in northeastern Syria into “Britain’s Guantanamo”.
This is a reference to the notorious American detention facility in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, that was used to imprison al Qaeda suspects indefinitely.
The Independent Commission on UK Counterterrorism warned that conditions at the Syrian camps, including Al Hol and Al Roj, “constitute inhuman and degrading treatment”.
It said forcing British-linked people to live in such facilities instead of allowing them to return home was “inconsistent” with the UK’s international human rights obligations.
The exact number of British citizens, as well as individuals like Begum, who had her citizenship revoked because she joined Islamic State (IS), stranded in the camps is not clear.
But estimates put the total figure at between 50 and 70, the majority of them women, and between 12 to 30 children, half of whom are under the age of 10.
There is a particular obligation of the British state to protect children from harm.
“The government should facilitate the voluntary repatriation for British nationals, including those deprived of British nationality,” the commission said.
“It should appoint a special envoy to oversee repatriation and inform returnees of the likelihood of prosecution.”
The report said that the UK was an “outlier” in its policy towards UK-linked citizens who joined Islamic State and are detained in camps.
Termed “strategic distance”, the British approach involved stripping people of their citizenship, limiting consular assistance and helping to fund the Kurdish guards who man the detention camps to ensure they remain stranded.
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By contrast, the US, Canada and several European states have brought their citizens who joined Islamic State home.
“Pressure from the US government, which has called for all states to take back their nationals, the change in the Syrian regime, and as other states repatriate, the prospect of what was referred to as ‘Europe’s Guantanamo’ becoming ‘Britain’s Guantanamo’, may force the government to begin returns,” the commission said.
The report cited research that found the balance of risk favoured repatriating British-linked people rather than leaving them stranded in Syria and open to potential further radicalisation.
“As escapes from camps are likely to lead to some returns to the UK, an organised programme of return, rehabilitation and integration is the best long-term option for managing risk,” the commission said.
It listed tools that could be used to manage returns and limit the risk to public safety, including preventing returnees from travelling, putting them under investigation and enrolling them in deradicalisation programmes.
Shamima Begum, now 26, is the most high-profile detainee in the Al Roj refugee camp.
She lost an appeal against the removal of her British citizenship last year.
Begum travelled to Syria in 2015, aged 15, with two schoolfriends. She married an Islamic State fighter soon after her arrival. They had three children, but none survived.
She has been stranded in the camp since 2019.
Read more:
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As well as recommendations on what to do about British-linked citizens detained in Syria, the report focused on how to improve counterterrorism measures in the UK.
Most significantly, it found that the UK’s Prevent counter-terrorism strategy “is no longer keeping the country safe” and needs a “radical overhaul”.
