Tag archives: Syria

Why is HTS banned in the UK and will this change now it has control in Syria?
December 9, 2024 By Faith Matters

Why is HTS banned in the UK and will this change now it has control in Syria?

Rebel groups ousted Bashar Assad’s regime in Syria on Sunday after 13 years of civil war. The UK Government now faces having to decide whether to lift a ban it placed on Islamist group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) after it swept to power if it needs to hold talks with the country’s new leaders. – […]

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Brother of murdered UK aid worker welcomes IS ‘Beatle’ conviction
April 15, 2022 By Faith Matters

Brother of murdered UK aid worker welcomes IS ‘Beatle’ conviction

The brother of a British aid worker killed by a so-called Islamic State terror cell known as “the Beatles” has welcomed the conviction of one of their members, saying: “An eight-year chapter of pain for my family has finally come to an end.” Mike Haines, whose brother David Haines was murdered by the barbaric group, […]

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Ex-soldier Lisa Smith married a member of al Qaida while in Syria, court hears
January 27, 2022 By Faith Matters

Ex-soldier Lisa Smith married a member of al Qaida while in Syria, court hears

Former Defence Forces soldier Lisa Smith married a member of al Qaida and stayed in a “bombed-out” house where militia and rebels held meetings when she was in Syria, her trial has heard. The Co Louth woman, 39, has pleaded not guilty to charges of membership of the illegal organisation, the so-called Islamic State, and […]

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Lisa Smith ‘enveloped herself in the black flag of Islamic State’, court hears
January 25, 2022 By Faith Matters

Lisa Smith ‘enveloped herself in the black flag of Islamic State’, court hears

Former Defence Forces soldier Lisa Smith “enveloped herself in the black flag” of the so-called Islamic State, the Special Criminal Court has heard. The Co Louth woman, 39, pleaded not guilty on Tuesday to charges of membership of the illegal organisation and of providing funds to benefit the group. Sean Gillane SC, for the prosecution, […]

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Ex-Defence Forces soldier in bid to have Islamic State terror charges dropped
January 11, 2022 By Faith Matters

Ex-Defence Forces soldier in bid to have Islamic State terror charges dropped

A former member of the Defence Forces is seeking to have charges of being a member of so-called Islamic State (IS) and financing terrorism dropped at the Special Criminal Court. Lawyers for Louth woman Lisa Smith, 39, have made an application for the case against her to be dismissed. It is expected that they will […]

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Rapping jihadi jailed for life for plotting lone wolf attack
April 13, 2021 By Faith Matters

Rapping jihadi jailed for life for plotting lone wolf attack

A rapping jihadi dubbed the Masked Menace has been jailed for at least 19 years for plotting a lone wolf knife attack during the coronavirus lockdown. Jobless Sahayb Abu, 27, bought an 18in sword, a knife, balaclavas and body armour online as he prepared to strike last summer. He was arrested on July 9 after […]

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Vienna attacker had previous terrorism conviction
November 3, 2020 By Faith Matters

Vienna attacker had previous terrorism conviction

Five people including an assailant have died and 17 others are wounded after a shooting in the heart of Vienna hours before a coronavirus lockdown started, Austrian authorities said. The dead attacker was a 20-year-old Austrian-North Macedonian dual national who had a previous terror conviction. Two men and two women died from their injuries after […]

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Syria’s Assad halts speech and complains of drop in blood pressure
August 13, 2020 By Faith Matters

Syria’s Assad halts speech and complains of drop in blood pressure

Syrian President Bashar Assad interrupted a speech he was giving to parliament, to say he needed to “sit down for a minute” after suffering a brief drop in blood pressure. Assad, 54, was half-an-hour through his speech when he began appearing tired and halted his speech twice to take a sip of water from a […]

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Hanzalah Patel and Safwaan Mansur – Convicted of Preparing for Terrorist Acts
May 20, 2019 By Faith Matters

Hanzalah Patel and Safwaan Mansur – Convicted of Preparing for Terrorist Acts

Two friends convicted of preparing for terrorist acts in support of the so-called Islamic State after trying to reach Syria have been jailed. Safwaan Mansur, from Birmingham, and Hanzalah Patel, from Leicester, travelled to Turkey in 2016 and 2017 after checking out an area near the Syrian border on TripAdvisor, a two-week trial was told. […]

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Christianity Grows in Syrian Town Once Besieged by Islamic State
April 17, 2019 By Faith Matters

Christianity Grows in Syrian Town Once Besieged by Islamic State

A community of Syrians who converted to Christianity from Islam is growing in Kobani, a town besieged by Islamic State for months, and where the tide turned against the militants four years ago. The converts say the experience of war and the onslaught of a group claiming to fight for Islam pushed them towards their […]

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