Hero Briton who fought ISIS grilled by detectives as he flies back to UK
A BRITON who gave up his high-flying City career to fight against ISIS in Syria was detained by anti-terror police after returning to the UK.
Macer Gifford, 30, who took part in battles to liberate the jihadists’ stronghold of Raqqa, was questioned by detectives at Heathrow. They took DNA swabs, photographed him and took his fingerprints.
The Met officers also confiscated his computer, camera and mobile. He was questioned for four hours before being released in the early hours of Friday but was not arrested.
The treatment of the ex- public schoolboy follows the arrest of other UK volunteers who joined rebels fighting ISIS. They have faced charges under terror legislation and spent lengthy periods on police bail. Their homes in the UK have also been searched by police.
Their experiences have sparked claims the UK has treated them more harshly than jihadists who have returned to this country. The Mail on Sunday recently revealed plans to offer ISIS fighters returning from Syria taxpayer-funded houses.
Mr Gifford said: ‘I was squeaky-clean before going to Syria to fight the jihadists. Now I’m being treated as if I’m a threat to this country. It is crazy how volunteers like me have been treated.’
Mr Gifford, of Cambridge, spent three years fighting ISIS before finally making his way back to the UK via Iraq and Egypt. On his arrival at Heathrow on Thursday he sent texts to the MoS saying he feared he would be detained as a terror suspect.
A police spokesman said: ‘A 30-year-old man was stopped under the Terrorism Act at Heathrow. He was questioned and released without arrest.’