The Foreign Office said Britain’s policy on those held in Syria remained unchanged and that it considered requests for help “on a case-by-case basis”, but campaigners said it was an important first step. Reprieve, a human rights group that has been following the case, said the woman was “trafficked, taken to Syria by a male relative when she was a young woman” and that “she and her child have suffered extreme trauma”. The woman’s identity was not immediately released and Reprieve asked that her name be withheld. The State Department’s initial announcement was even less specific and was quietly made in an overnight tweet. Jonathan Hargreaves, the UK’s special envoy for Syria, tweeted on Wednesday night: “UK officials facilitated the repatriation of two British nationals from Syria. In accordance with long-standing policy, we review each request for consular assistance in Syria on a case-by-case basis, taking into account all relevant considerations, including national security.” It is estimated that around 60 Britons, including 35 children, are being held in indefinite detention in Syria. The best known is Shamima Begum, who left Bethnal Green and traveled to Syria when she was 15. Most were captured by Syrian Kurdish forces in the final days of the ground war in early 2019 and held indefinitely in sprawling camps such as al-Hawl in northeastern Syria. Although progress has been slow, some countries are gradually taking their citizens back. Earlier this month it emerged that Australia would begin repatriating around 60 people, 20 women and 40 children, from the camps. Britain endured longer than most other nations. Nearly three years ago, scores of orphans were repatriated, with then-Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab saying that returning them home was the “right thing to do”. It is unclear whether Wednesday’s announcement will herald a further change in practice. Complicating the picture is the fact that the UK has revoked the citizenship of some of those who traveled to Syria, including Begum, although her lawyers continue to challenge her case in court. The countries had said they feared some of those arrested posed a continuing security risk because they had been linked to Islamic State. However, detention conditions remain poor and many of the children were either born in the camps or know no other life than living in often squalid conditions. Experts also said women in the camps were at risk of further radicalization by a hardline “radicalized women” who remained IS supporters and dictated some of the conditions in the camps. Detained men are usually held separately in makeshift prisons.
