British Daesh militants to be put on trial in Syria

LONDON: British Daesh militants could face trial in Syria under plans announced by the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), which is holding thousands of prisoners in the country’s northeast.
The SDF’s political arm, the Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria, announced on Thursday that it would begin putting the militants on trial in Syria in March, The Independent reported.
The announcement followed a meeting between the SDF’s foreign relations committee and Finland’s Foreign Ministry.
“We explained our intention to set up a special court for Isis (Daesh) to the Finnish government and asked for help from the legal and technical aspects, and that this trial be transparent and public,” the administration said in a statement.
The SDF has been calling for foreign governments to repatriate their citizens who joined Daesh so they can face trial in their own countries.
However, the UK and other European countries have refused to bring them home, citing security risks.
“Unfortunately many states have not responded to our appeals. For example, we have handed over less than 10 percent of Isis-linked children to their countries so far,” the statement said.
“There is the urgent need for a solution to this issue in our region, and to pressure states to receive their nationals.”
More than 1,000 foreign militants have been held in detention by the SDF since the territorial defeat of Daesh last year.
Around 40 of these fighters are British — 10 men and 30 women who are being held separately along with their children.
The SDF is a Kurdish-led armed group that had been a key member of the international coalition fighting Daesh.
Meanwhile, a British woman who ran away to join Daesh as a teenager lost a legal challenge on Friday aimed at restoring her citizenship, which was revoked on national security grounds.
Shamima Begum, one of three London schoolgirls who traveled to Syria in 2015, resurfaced at a refugee camp in the country last year and told reporters she wanted to come home.
But her apparent lack of remorse has triggered criticism in Britain, and the family has expressed its own shock at her lack of repentance.
Former Home Secretary Sajid Javid revoked her citizenship, but she challenged the decision before the Special Immigration Appeals Commission.
She argued that she is not the citizen of another country, and that Javid’s decision left her stateless.
But the tribunal ruled in Javid’s favor on Friday. Judge Doron Blum said the decision did not breach the Home Office’s “extraterritorial human rights policy by exposing Ms Begum to a real risk of death or inhuman or degrading treatment.”
The tribunal ruled that she was “a citizen of Bangladesh by descent,” and therefore not rendered stateless.
Her attorney, Daniel Furner, said the decision was baffling and would be appealed.
Begum’s family has long argued that she has never had a Bangladeshi passport and that she is from the UK.

British Daesh militants to be put on trial in Syria