Jenny McCartney Jenny McCartney

What’s the difference between Shamima Begum and Unity Mitford?

Plus: absorbing tales of insane bravery from outer space

Shamima Begum at a detainment camp in Syria in 2019. Photo: Sam Tarling / Getty Images

The debate sparked by Josh Baker’s BBC podcast on Shamima Begum, and her teenage flight to join Isis, has divided opinion sharply into two camps. According to one, she was a naive 15-year-old cynically groomed by hardened operatives in the most feared terror organisation in the world. No, says the other, she was a capable girl who – knowing of Isis atrocities – made a highly determined decision to join them.

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