Shamima Begum could soon be free of a jail camp in Syria as tensions grow between Kurdish fighters and government forces.
Begum, 26, has been contained in the prison for years after being stripped of her citizenship in 2019.
She travelled from east London to Syria as a 15-year-old schoolgirl to affix Islamic State (IS), marrying a 27-year-old Dutch national.
The previous Brit has since said she was ‘ashamed’ to have joined the group, regretting her decision deeply.
But after spending years contained in the Syrian prison, she may very well be free as clashes between the Syrian Democratic Forces, backed by the US, and government forces increase.
There was intense fighting outside of al-Roj detention camp, where Shamima lives, with speculation that those inside may very well be freed.
Western officials have described the prisoners as a ‘terror army’ in waiting, with concerns about where they’ll go if freed.
Contained in the prison partitions, 1000’s of ISIS soldiers and tens of 1000’s of girls and kids are locked up.
This week, the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces said several of its fighters had been killed and greater than a dozen wounded near the camps.
The SDF, the principal US-backed force that fought IS in Syria, controls greater than a dozen prisons within the north east where 9,000 IS members have been held for years without trial.
Most of the detained extremists are believed to have carried out atrocities in Syria and Iraq after IS declared a caliphate in June 2014 over large parts of the 2 countries.
Since joining ISIS, Begum gave birth to a number of children – all of whom died young – and was pregnant when she was found living inside a camp after leaving the UK.
In 2021, she gave a tell-all interview where she said she was ‘groomed’ and ‘manipulated into coming’ to Syria.
She said on the time: ‘I’m completely sorry for anyone who has been affected by ISIS, I by no means agree or attempt to justify what they did.
‘It’s not justifiable to kill innocent people within the name of faith. I just wish to apologise. I’m sorry.’
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