Shamima Begum’s Baby Can Still Be A British Citizen, Sajid Javid Suggests

Shamima Begum’s baby could still hold British citizenship despite the Home Office’s move to strip the 19-year-old of her citizenship, Sajid Javid has suggested. 

Speaking in the House of Commons on Wednesday, the home secretary said he would not comment on individual cases, but told MPs: “Children should not suffer, so if a parent does lose their British citizenship, it does not affect the rights of their child.”

He added: “Deprivation is a powerful tool that can only be used to keep the most dangerous individuals out of this country and we do not use it lightly.”

Javid said that when someone “turns their back on the fundamental values and supports terror, they don’t have an automatic right to return to the UK”. 

Javid’s comments come a day after it was revealed that the Home Office had revoked Begum’s British citizenship, telling the teenager’s mother in a letter that the decision had been made “in light of the circumstances of your daughter”. 

Begum travelled to Syria four years ago as a 15-year-old schoolgirl to join Islamic State. She was recently discovered heavily pregnant in a refugee camp in the country.