Jihadi bride’s crying mum says she ‘understands’ why Brits want her BANNED from UK as schoolgirl demands to have ISIS thug’s baby on NHS
Pregnant Shamima Begum, 19, wants to flee a Syrian refugee camp, have her baby and 'live quietly' in Britain
THE crying mum of an ISIS jihadi bride says she “understands" why Brits want her daughter BANNED from the UK.
Pregnant Shamima Begum, 19, wants to flee a Syrian refugee camp, have her baby and “live quietly” in Britain.
But security ministers and critics have fumed there should be no chance of her ever returning to the UK.
Today Begum's brother-in-law Mohammed Rehman said her weeping mum knew her daughter was not welcome in Britain.
Speaking on behalf of the family, Mr Rehman told : “As a family we can't understand how her head was turned like this and why she thought going to Syria was a good idea.
“I can understand why people in this country are angry and don't want her back. What she's done doesn't portray Islam in a good light.”
I can understand why people in this country are angry and don't want her back. What she's done doesn't portray Islam in a good light
Mohammed Rehman
But while her family pleas for "compassion" the teen shows no sign of repentance.
During interviews today she even called herself “weak” for leaving ISIS and praised those who stayed to fight with the death cult.
She now wants to worm her way back to the UK and benefit from NHS treatment - but government ministers have said there is no chance of her being rescued.
Meanwhile critics are furious at the thought of her picking up her life at home in Bethnal Green, East London.
She sounds to be completely unrepentant, she sounds cynical, she said she wasn't fazed by the sight of these heads in a bin as she described it.
Dr Kim Howells
Dr Kim Howells, a former Foreign Office and Counter-Terrorism Minister under Tony Blair, told : “She sounds to be completely unrepentant, she sounds cynical, she said she wasn't fazed by the sight of these heads in a bin as she described it.
“And now she wants to take advantage of the NHS. You can bet your bottom dollar there will be a lobby to get this girl home on humanitarian grounds.”
NO RESCUE FOR JIHADI BRIDE
Security minister Ben Wallace said British lives will not be risked trying to rescue the jihadi bride.
He added that if she does make it back to the UK she will face prosecution “at the very least”.
Mr Wallace said today: “She's a British citizen, she has rights. That's the reality of it. It's not about me or anyone else saying you can't come.
“You have rights. But you know, don't be surprised by what reception you get when you come back when it comes to investigations and law enforcement.”
You have rights. But you know, don't be surprised by what reception you get when you come back when it comes to investigations and law enforcement.
Security Minister, Ben Wallace
Ex UKIP leader turned LBC radio host Nigel Farage was also among those calling for the government to stop Begum returning to Britain.
He fumed: “This woman shows no remorse for her actions, remains a committed jihadist and is totally unsuitable to come into our country.”
'BRING ME HOME'
Begum made the plea to return to the UK after telling reporters she could give birth “any day now”.
Her pregnancy comes after her first two children died of starvation and illness, with Begum hoping the baby can have a decent life with her in the UK.
Speaking to a who tracked her down she said: "I'm scared this baby is going to get sick in this camp.
"That's why I really want to get back to Britain.
I'm scared this baby is going to get sick in this camp. That's why I really want to get back to Britain.
ISIS schoolgirl Shamima Begum, 19
"Because I know it will be taken care of, healthwise at least."
But critics have slammed the "unrepentant" mum-to-be for wanting to give birth here as they argue she has showed "no remorse".
Begum ran away to join the brutal Islamic extremist regime with two young pals from Bethnal Green in 2015.
And she calmly revealed that the first time she saw a severed head “didn’t faze me at all”.
The teen was discovered in a camp filled with refugees escaping the battle for the final ISIS stronghold.
She told him she had been married to a Dutch fighter and enjoyed a “normal” life, but he is said to have surrendered himself to Syrian fighters and she is believed to be a widow.
I’ll do anything required just to be able to come home and live quietly with my child
Shamima Begum
She added: “I know what everyone at home thinks of me as I have read all that was written about me online. But I just want to come home to have my child. I’ll do anything required just to be able to come home and live quietly with my child.”
Discussing what made her walk away from the embattled village of Baghuz, Begum described herself as “weak” for leaving ISIS and praised those brave enough to stay.
She added: “In the end, I just could not endure anymore. I just couldn’t take it. Now all I want to do is come home to Britain.”
The teen also criticised the group’s oppression and corruption saying they didn’t “deserve victory”.
But she insisted: “I’m not the same silly little 15-year-old schoolgirl who ran away from Bethnal Green four years ago and I don’t regret coming here."
I don't regret coming here
Shamima Begum
Begum - who used her elder sister’s passport to leave the UK - fled with two Bethnal Green Academy pals, Kadiza Sultana and Amira Abase, in February 2015.
The trio flew to Turkey and then used people smugglers to cross the border into Syria.
She believed that her two Bethnal Green friends were still alive as recently as two weeks ago, but Sultana is widely thought to have been killed in a Raqqa airstrike in 2016.
Amira's dad has now said the girls "pose no threat" as he begged for them to be allowed home.
'COMPLETELY UNREPENTANT'
Anyone who returns to the UK after travelling to ISIS territory faces a criminal investigation and up to ten years in jail.
But critics have today argued Begum's lack of remorse shows she is a danger to Britain - but will be allowed back in the country because of the baby.
Dr Kim Howells, a former Foreign Office and Counter-Terrorism Minister under Tony Blair and Gordon Brown, said: "She sounds to be completely unrepentant, she sounds cynical, she said she wasn't phased by the sight of these heads in a bin as she described it. And now she wants to take advantage of the NHS.
"You can bet your bottom dollar there will be a lobby that will swing into action to get this girl home on humanitarian grounds.
"There's not going to be many people with great enthusiasm for bringing her back, but I suspect she will make it in the end."
I am not putting at risk British people’s lives by going to look for former terrorists
Security minister Ben Wallace
Security minister Ben Wallace has also weighed in on the debate - saying he will not risk the safety of Brits.
He told the BBC: "Actions have consequences.
"I am not putting at risk British people’s lives by going to look for former terrorists.
"We have a duty to the UK citizens here to make sure we take measures to keep the safe. We have to mitigate the threat if she comes back."
He said that "as a British citizen she has the right to home here" but he added: "Anyone who goes to fight for Isis, a dreadful, horrendous group, should expect to be interviewed and potentially prosecuted."
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Times war correspondent Anthony Loyd, who found Begum, told Today she was "two things".
He said: "She is the 15-year-old schoolgirl who was groomed and lured to the caliphate, and four years later, with that background, she is an indoctrinated jihadi bride.
"She didn't express regret, she said she had no regrets, she was calm and composed but she was also in a state of shock - she had just come out of a battlefield, nine months pregnant, many of her friends dead and she's gone through air strikes and all the rest of it - so I wouldn't want to rush to judge her too harshly."
Renu has revealed that her family had lost contact with the jihadi bride for the “longest time”.
She pleaded for the British Government to allow her sister to return back to the UK.
"She’s pregnant and vulnerable, and it’s important we get her out of al-Hawl camp and home as soon as possible."
RETURNING JIHADIS What is the law in Britain?
In 2018, it was revealed that almost 400 Brit jihadis who fought for bloodthirsty ISIS in Syria are back in the UK.
But shockingly just one in ten have been prosecuted for "direct action they've carried out in Syria".
Around 15 per cent of the 850 Brits believed to have travelled to Syria or Iraq have died.
The Home Office says every person who returns is questioned by police and an assessment made over whether they are a threat to Britain.
However few have been prosecuted.
The Counter-Terrorism and Border Security Bill is currently going through Parliament, after its third reading in the House of Lords.
This could make travelling abroad to join terror groups an offence which carries a penalty of ten years in prison.
Security Minister Ben Wallace said: "The UK advises against all travel to Syria and parts of Iraq. Anyone who does travel to these areas, for whatever reason, is putting themselves in considerable danger.
"Everyone who returns from taking part in the conflict in Syria or Iraq must expect to be investigated by the police to determine if they have committed criminal offences, and to ensure that they do not pose a threat to our national security.
"There are a range of terrorism offences where individuals can be convicted for crimes committed overseas and we can also use Temporary Exclusion Orders to control an individuals' return to the UK."
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