Mother of man jailed in Syria for Islamic State links calls for his repatriation to UK or Canada

"Sally Lane, the mother of Jack Letts, 30, said she was frantically trying to find out as much as possible, and that it was unclear if he would face the death penalty in Iraq or remain in Syria or be sent to Canada or the UK in line with US demands. Neither the Canadian nor British government has updated her after an outbreak of fighting in Syria last week left the future of Letts and other prisoners from up to 70 countries uncertain."

"Oxford-raised Letts travelled to join Islamic State in Syria and Iraq aged 18, during the early phases of the terror group's caliphate. He had converted to Islam aged 16, and dropped out of sixth form because of mental health problems. He was captured by Syrian Kurdish forces fighting against IS in May 2017 and has been held without trial ever since. British ministers removed his UK citizenship two years later, leaving him a Canadian national, the birth country of his father, John."

"We've heard absolutely nothing. They think we don't deserve to know, Lane said. But she said the UK and others could not easily ignore the issue after the US intervention. I can't see that western governments will allow their citizens to be put on trial in Iraq where they have the death penalty and flawed trials, Lane said. If the authorities in Canada or the UK wanted to, they could charge Letts with terror offences on home ground as a condition for his return,"

Sally Lane demands repatriation of her son Jack Letts, detained in Syria nearly nine years without trial, as the US prepares to airlift 7,000 Islamic State-linked prisoners from Syria to Iraq. The transfer raises fears that foreign detainees could face the death penalty or flawed trials in Iraq. Letts, who travelled to join Islamic State at 18 and converted to Islam at 16, was captured by Syrian Kurdish forces in May 2017 and has remained in custody. British ministers stripped his UK citizenship two years later, leaving him a Canadian national. Neither British nor Canadian authorities have provided updates after recent fighting.

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