IS bride Shamima Begum allowed to return UK to fight for citizenship

Shamima Begum, who went to Syria to join Islamic State, has been allowed by a UK court on Thursday to return home to challenge government's decision which revoked her citizenship.

The court said the 20-year-old could not get a "fair and effective appeal" or play "any meaningful part" in the process if she fought her case from a Syrian refugee camp.

"Ms Begum should be allowed to come to the United Kingdom to pursue her appeal albeit subject to such controls as the (home secretary) deems appropriate," the court said, reported news agency AFP.

Begum was 15, when she along with two other school-going girls fled home to join the jihadist group on February 17, 2015.

Soon after reaching IS-controlled region, she married a Dutch and was found nine-months pregnant in a refugee camp in February 2019.

Begum's newborn baby died soon after she was born and her two other children lost their lives under IS rule.

The then-home secretary, Sajid Javid, cancelled her citizenship on grounds of national security.

Following this decision, Begum approached court, arguing that the move would make her stateless, encourage imhuman treatment and pose the risk of her death.

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson's spokesman said the government was "bitterly disappointed" with the verdict and would seek an appeal to ensure Begum could not return before the matter was heard.