Foreign Fighters: preventative action (UK mainly)

[davidbfpo]

A strange case and one wonders if the threat at home is real. The BBC's detailed commentary opens with:

A Portsmouth man accused of trying to join Islamist fighters in Syria has become the first person in the UK to be convicted of a terrorist offence relating to the conflict. A jury at Kingston Crown Court found Mashudur Choudhury guilty of preparing for acts of terrorism after a two-week trial. But what exactly was Choudhury up to - and why does this conviction matter?

If there is one thing that is true about Mashudur Choudhury, it is that he is a liar and a fantasist.

Link:http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-27491066 and http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-27488006

I note his conviction is for:

...engaging in conduct in preparation of terrorist acts....The court heard he had travelled to Syria to attend a terrorist training camp. He was arrested at Gatwick Airport on his return to the UK......Prosecutors at the trial said Choudhury had wanted to be trained in the use of firearms and intended to pursue a "political, religious or ideological cause".

One wonders if a conviction can be secured if someone claims their fight was to protect the civilian population.

The later BBC report asks:

The outcome also raises another question: what will happen to the large numbers of British men still in Syria? Will these men ever come back?

Yesterday I caught part of an excellent WoTR online discussion and Shiraz Maher, of ICSR, stated that two hundred and fifty "fighters" had already returned to the UK. I will listen again this evening:http://warontherocks.com/2014/05/the...aeda-and-isis/

Background on SWC

There are two recent, relevant threads Today's Wild Geese: Foreign Fighters in the GWOT and a smaller one Foreign fighters in Syria: a crime minus a motive?

[davidbfpo]

A fascinating glimpse into the "shades of grey" over the legality and illegality of fighting in Syria, for UK nationals / residents. Under the headline:

Syria conflict: British jihadists are nothing like the freedom fighters of the Spanish Civil War

Prosecutorial discretion:

For example, let’s imagine a Briton is visiting family in Syria and the neighbourhood comes under attack by regime forces, or indeed rebel ones. If said Briton were to subsequently use weapons to help defend family members or other innocent people, he would not necessarily be prosecuted in the UK. However, those who join terrorism-linked groups and proactively engage in militant activity are far likelier to be prosecuted.

Link:http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worl...Civil-War.html

I suspect discretion was used when many exiles returned to Libya, to my knowledge no-one was arrested.