Running into the arms of terror
THE SHAMIMA
BBC2, 9pm
WHEN she was just 15 years old, schoolgirl Shamima Begum and two friends ran away from London to join the terror group ISIS.
Known as the Bethnal Green girls, the news made global headlines but attempts to find them failed.
Four years later, pregnant with her third child, Shamima emerged from the ashes of the Islamic State, desperate to come home.
But she showed little remorse and the British Government decided to revoke her citizenship, leaving her in a Syrian prison camp.
However, her lawyers claim she is a victim of trafficking and should be allowed to return.
It has proved a polarising and hugely debated topic in the UK, with some feeling sympathy for this young woman, saying she was groomed, while others have labelled her a traitor and a threat.
In this fascinating documentary, Shamima gives her account of what happened over the past eight years for the first time.
Speaking to investigative journalist Josh Baker, who has been following her story since the day she left, she talks through her journey from a comfortable family home to being married to an abusive terrorist.
Josh questions Shamima to get to the truth, although you will have to make up your own mind as she recounts her version.
Asked how she thinks she is perceived, she says: “As a danger, as a potential risk to them, to their safety, to their way of living.”
But she seems in need of redemption, adding: “ISIS was the worst thing of the 21st century and I was a part of it. Now I have to face the consequences of my actions.”