INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
Irish minister says every effort would be made to bring the Irish woman back
(Reuters)Charlie Flanagan, the Irish minister for justice and equality, said Sunday that "every effort" would be made to bring an Irish
woman believed to be detained in northern Syria back to Ireland.Lisa Smyth, formerly of the Irish Defense Forces, is believed to have been
radicalized and gone to Syria a few years ago
She allegedly has ties to the ISIS
She is also believed to have a young son.Speaking to Irish public broadcaster RTE, Flanagan said, "I understand there is an Irish citizen
Every effort will be made by Irish authorities to ensure she gets home.""If there are children involved, of course, we need to ensure
there's an element of compassion there," Flanagan said.The Irish Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade confirmed it was aware of reports
of an Irish person in Syria but said that no request for consular assistance had been made and that "it is not feasible at present for Irish
consular officials to enter such a conflict zone."Still, Flanagan's initial reaction stands in contrast to many high-profile cases in Europe
It appeared that the British government erroneously believed Begum also had Bangladeshi citizenship
Javid then said that he wouldn't render anyone stateless, and that, in any event, he would not punish Begum's baby
Begum's Dutch extremist husband, Yago Riedijk, said their family should get to go to the Netherlands, although it was unclear that Begum
would be allowed to go there
On Sunday, Begum's baby, born about three weeks prior, was confirmed dead
Diane Abbott, a member of the British opposition, said Javid "has a lot to answer for."But the British government is not alone in trying to
refuse the return of foreign fighters and their families.The United States is insisting that Hoda Muthana, an Alabama woman who left in 2014
to marry an ISIS fighter in Syria, is not a U.S
citizen and, therefore, cannot return to the United States because children born in the United States to foreign diplomats do not acquire
citizenship by virtue of birth
Muthana's family says that her father was not a diplomat when she was born and that she was born a U.S
citizen and has had a valid U.S
passport.Earlier this month, Germany announced plans to introduce legislation that would strip dual citizens fighting for terrorist groups
of their German citizenship.And late last month, an appeals court in Belgium ruled that the government need not repatriate Belgian women who
The Justice Ministry said in response that it would try to bring back their children - but leave the mothers in Syria.
