‘I’M SORRY’

Teen Who Left U.K. to Become ISIS Bride Begs Forgiveness for Joining ‘Death Cult’

Shamima Begum was 15 when she left Britain to join the militant group ISIS. Now, she wants her citizenship back and is offering the British government her expertise in exchange.

A 22-year-old British woman who fled her home to join ISIS is lamenting her decision and wants to return to Britain, according to The Washington Post. Shamima Begum said her decision to join the extremist group at 15 was the result of teenage disillusionment, and she thought she was “doing the right thing as a Muslim,” said Begum in an interview with Good Morning Britain.

Begum expressed no contrition to Sky News in 2019 about her decision but is now claiming she didn’t realize ISIS was a “death cult.” “I tell you from the bottom of my heart that I regret every, every decision I’ve made,” said Begum, adding that she would rather die than rejoin the extremist organization. Begum insists she did not commit any crimes with the terrorist group and has repeatedly expressed her desire to help the British government fight back against terrorist organizations.

In 2015, Begum, accompanied by two classmates, traveled from London to the Syrian border. Two weeks later, Begum wed a terrorist and has had three children since—all of whom have died of illness.