Shamima Begum Appeals Citizenship Revocation in UK Court, Argues She Was Trafficking Victim

Begum's legal team claims the decision to revoke her British citizenship in 2019 failed to consider potential trafficking and arguable state failures in her journey to join ISIS in Syria.

• Shamima Begum's legal fight to regain her British citizenship is being heard at the Court of Appeal. Begum, who left the UK at age 15 to join ISIS in Syria, is arguing that she was a victim of trafficking.
• Begum's citizenship was revoked in 2019 on national security grounds by the Home Secretary at the time, Sajid Javid. Begum's lawyers argued that she should have been viewed as a victim of child trafficking influenced by a determined ISIS propaganda machine.
• In a previous ruling, Mr Justice Jay stated there was a 'credible suspicion' Begum had been recruited, transferred, and harboured for exploitation. However, he ruled this did not prevent her citizenship from being removed.
• Begum's legal team alleges that the decision to revoke her citizenship was 'unlawful' as it failed to consider potential trafficking and state failures. They point to 'arguable breaches of duty' by state bodies including the Metropolitan Police and Tower Hamlets council.
• The British government's lawyers argue that Begum still poses a national security risk, stating that the decision to revoke someone's citizenship must focus on the individual's risk, irrespective of how they became a risk.

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