Mother of IS member loses bid to block UK evidence transfer

The mother of a British man who is suspected in the beheadings of Westerners taken hostage by the Islamic State group lost a court challenge on Tuesday to the British government's decision to share evidence about her son with American authorities.


PTI | London | Updated: 22-09-2020 23:01 IST | Created: 22-09-2020 22:39 IST
Mother of IS member loses bid to block UK evidence transfer
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The mother of a British man who is suspected in the beheadings of Westerners taken hostage by the Islamic State group lost a court challenge on Tuesday to the British government's decision to share evidence about her son with American authorities. El Shafee Elsheikh and another British man who admitted joining IS, Alexanda Kotey, are in US custody. The two are accused of belonging to a cell of executioners responsible for killing Western captives in Syria.

Surviving captives nicknamed them and two other jihadists they encountered “The Beatles” because they spoke English with British accents. Elsheikh's mother challenged British Home Secretary Priti Patel's decision to provide information to US prosecutors under a “mutual legal assistance” request, arguing that the move was unlawful and incompatible with data protection laws.

Judges rejected the case on Tuesday, meaning that British authorities can now hand over the requested evidence to American authorities. US prosecutors notified the British government last month that they would not pursue the death penalty against the two suspects, removing a hurdle in the men's potential prosecution. An earlier British court ruling had effectively blocked the sharing of evidence with American authorities because the US had not offered assurances that the death penalty was off the table.

In a statement on Tuesday, the US Department of Justice said it was pleased with the High Court's decision. "We are grateful that the British government has passed its evidence to us and confirmed its commitment to cooperate with our efforts to investigate and prosecute the two ISIS terrorists currently being held in US military custody,” the Justice Department said. "We remain committed to holding these defendants accountable and obtaining justice for the victims of their terrorist activity.” The British men captured two years ago by a Kurdish-led, US-backed militia, are accused of participating in a brutal Islamic State group cell known for beheadings and the barbaric treatment of American aid workers, journalists and other hostages in Syria.

US officials have not announced any charges against the men.

(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)

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