Shamima Begum’s lawyer hints at new motion amid Syria uncertainty – ‘watch this house’

Shamima Begum’s hopes of returning to the UK have been boosted by the fall of tyrant Bashar al-Assad, her lawyer says.

Ms Begum, who grew up in London before fleeing when she was 15, is currently in a refugee camp in Northern Syria. The fate of those in such camps is unclear after Islamist group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) forced Assad into exile.

Her lawyer Tasnime Akunjee told The Telegraph that if the Roj camp, where she is living, is closed she may be “bled out” into the desert. He said there would be a legal argument that depriving her of British citizenship would put her at greater risk than any danger she could pose to national security.

Hinting at a fresh legal action Mr Akunjee said: “Watch this space.” The Government insists it has no plans to review the controversial decision to revoke her British citizenship in 2019. Earlier this year the Supreme Court said she had no right to appeal the latest ruling against her.

Quizzed about the case on BBC Breakfast this morning, Border Security Minister Dame Angela Eagle said: “I don’t have any thoughts that I can share publicly about potential legal cases.

“The courts have decided that she doesn’t have a right to return as it stands. She has lawyers that are entitled to carry on making claims. It won’t help if I, as a minister, publicly comment on any of that.”

UK-born Ms Begum travelled to Syria in 2015 with two friends. She married an ISIS fighter and gave birth to three children, who have all since died. Former Home Secretary Sajid Javid stripped her of UK citizenship in 2019 on the grounds of national security.

On Monday Cabinet Office minister Pat McFadden said: “It is difficult to say at the moment what will happen to those camps, all of this is very uncertain at the moment.” He went on: “No one can say for sure what’s going to happen to those camps right now, or indeed whether this new group will be able to take over the whole country. That’s not certain either.”

Ms Begum has long been calling to be allowed to return to the UK, where she is likely to face legal action.