Shamima Begum’s First-Ever Live Interview On British Television Is Dividing The Nation

In her first-ever live interview on British television, Shamima Begum said she thought she was ‘doing the right thing’ when she travelled to Syria to support the Islamic State group as a teenager. However, she has left the nation divided over her comments. 

However, despite Begum’s claim that she ‘made a mistake at a very young age’ during her discussion with the hosts via webchat, the nation has responded in very contrasting ways to her apology.

Begum was born in the UK to parents of Bangladeshi heritage, however, she left at the age of 15 to travel to Syria in 2015.

She travelled to the Islamic State headquarters in Raqqa via Turkey and married a Dutch recruit, later becoming pregnant with his child, according to the BBC.

Begum noted how she knows it’s ‘hard for British people to try and forgive [her] because they’ve lived in fear of ISIS’, but wanted viewers to realise that she ‘also lived in fear of ISIS and lost loved ones’.

One wrote: ‘Everyone is quick to call Prince Andrew and Epstein for taking advantage and grooming 17 year olds so why can’t the same people feel the same about the evil, manipulative people who groomed Shamima Begum? She was 15 FFS and being brainwashed by evil @GMB #shamimaBegum.’

Another commented:

Mad how 15 is “too young” for kids to make their own decision on a vaccine but Shamima Begum “knew what she was doing” at 15. Almost like there is something underlying I can’t put my finger on…

A third said: ‘I urge everyone to watch the @skytv documentary “The Return” before they make judgement on Shamima Begum, there are others like her. @GMB she’s been through a lot.’

Meanwhile, some Twitter users were far from happy with the broadcast. ‘Well I’ll be switching off why are you giving her air time to beg to come back to the UK’, wrote one annoyed viewer. ‘I’m sorry but a 15 yr old understands what is happening in the news. This girl knew exactly what she was doing’, said another.

While Begum apologised from the ‘bottom of her heart’ if she ‘offended anyone’ by travelling to Syria, there’s no doubt the nation has been left divided over her first-ever live broadcast interview.