UK to release citizen who joined jihadist groups in Syria in 2013
QAMISHLI, Syria (North Press) – ABritish citizen who joined a jihadist group in Syria during the civil war will be freed from prison, the Daily Mail reported on Monday.
Mohammed Nahin Ahmed is set to be freed from jail after being given the green light by the Parole Board, according to the Daily Mail.
Ahmed and a friend of him, then both 22, travelled to Syria in May 2013 to join “Kataib al-Muhajireen,” an al-Qaeda linked terrorist group, after contacting Islamic extremists who were fighting against the Syrian government.
Ahmed and his childhood friend Yusuf Zubair Sarwar were jailed and branded “dangerous” in 2014 after pleading guilty for joining a terrorist group in Syria. They were sentenced to 12 years and eight months with an extended license period of five years.
Sarwar was released from jail on license after a Parole Board hearing in April 2022, and he was required to serve two-thirds of his custodial sentence before being considered for release.
Ahmed and Sarwar left Britain claiming to be going on a University trip to Turkey but went to Syria instead.
They were arrested on their arrival in the UK in 2014, as traces of military-grade explosives were found on their clothes, including TNT and nitroglycerine.
Shocking photos showing them armed with guns emerged as part of the case after they spent eight months in Syria.
Nigel Mills, Member of Parliament of the UK, said: “This is a worrying situation. He [Ahmed] is clearly one of the most dangerous terrorists in the country and the thought he has been directed a release is disturbing.”
A spokesperson for the Parole Board confirmed that a panel of the Parole Board has directed the release of Ahmed following an oral hearing.