UK Government bans travelling to to Islamic State areas in Syria

UK Government on Monday announced a fresh crackdown on its nationals travelling to Islamic State (ISIS) territory in Syria as it revealed that Britain’s security forces had foiled 19 major terror attacks in the past two years.

In a speech on national security at Scotland Yard headquarters in London, UK Home Secretary Sajid Javid warned British nationals to leave conflict-ridden territories or risk a jail term of up to 10 years, effectively imposing a ban on travel to Idlib and the northeast of Syria under new powers to tackle suspected terrorists.

“Each and every day, our security services fight against terror – from large international terrorist groups, to radicalised individuals. In the past two years, they have foiled 19 major terrorist attacks – 14 of them Islamist, and five of them motivated by extreme right-wing ideologies,” said Javid, the UK’s seniormost Pakistani-origin minister.

“And despite this impressive work, the tempo of terrorist activity is increasing,” he warned.

Laying out details of the UK’s new Counter-Terrorism and Border Security Act, he unveiled powers to “designate” a region anywhere in the world and make it an offence for British nationals to be there.

“So, anyone who is in these areas without a legitimate reason should be on notice. I can also see that there may be a case in the future for considering designating parts of West Africa,” he added.

If the Syrian regions are designated under the new UK act, Britons detained by the Syrian Defence Forces will be deemed unable to leave and return to the UK. A person already in a designated area at the time of designation will not commit an offence if they leave the area within one month of such an order being made.

Source: India Times