David Cameron has announced plans to stop suspected jihadists returning home to the UK from Syria and Iraq.
Police would be given the power to cancel suspected jihadists' passports for up to two years under new Temporary Exclusion Orders.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Airlines would be compelled to share passenger data, suggesting planes carrying suspected jihadists could be turned away from Britain.
In a speech to the Australian parliament in Canberra, the Prime Minister said the action was needed to deal with the threat posed by more than 500 Britons who have travelled to fight in Syria and Iraq.
Action is needed to counter the "twisted narrative" of Islamism "that has seduced some of our people", he said.
However, The Times notes that jihadists could still insist on travelling back to Britain, but would have to submit to prosecution or close monitoring.
The proposals, which form part of the Counter-Terrorism Bill, due to be published before the end of the month, mark a slight retreat from Cameron's original proposals in September to altogether remove passports from suspected jihadists. This was rejected by Liberal Democrats, who said it broke international law.
The plans "could yet founder on legal challenges", says The Times. For example, it is not clear why countries such as Germany, France and Turkey should accept responsibility for Britons made subject to the Temporary Exclusion Orders.
Human rights lawyers are also likely to argue that placing individuals on a "no-fly" list amounts to rendering suspects stateless, "something which is forbidden under at least two UN conventions", says the newspaper.
BBC political correspondent Robin Brant describes the plan as "highly contentious" and says there are "serious concerns about whether it is workable given other established laws on citizenship, immigration and human rights".
-
‘Social media is the new tabloid’Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
-
Can the NBA survive FBI’s gambling investigation?Talking Points A casualty of the ‘sports gambling revolution’
-
How are ICE’s recruitment woes complicating Trump’s immigration agenda?TODAY’S BIG QUESTION Lowered training standards and ‘athletically allergic’ hopefuls are hindering the White House plan to turn the Department of Homeland Security into a federal police force
-
Sanae Takaichi: Japan’s Iron Lady set to be the country’s first woman prime ministerIn the Spotlight Takaichi is a member of Japan’s conservative, nationalist Liberal Democratic Party
-
Russia is ‘helping China’ prepare for an invasion of TaiwanIn the Spotlight Russia is reportedly allowing China access to military training
-
Interpol arrests hundreds in Africa-wide sextortion crackdownIN THE SPOTLIGHT A series of stings disrupts major cybercrime operations as law enforcement estimates millions in losses from schemes designed to prey on lonely users
-
China is silently expanding its influence in American citiesUnder the Radar New York City and San Francisco, among others, have reportedly been targeted
-
How China uses 'dark fleets' to circumvent trade sanctionsThe Explainer The fleets are used to smuggle goods like oil and fish
-
One year after mass protests, why are Kenyans taking to the streets again?today's big question More than 60 protesters died during demonstrations in 2024
-
What happens if tensions between India and Pakistan boil over?TODAY'S BIG QUESTION As the two nuclear-armed neighbors rattle their sabers in the wake of a terrorist attack on the contested Kashmir region, experts worry that the worst might be yet to come
-
Why Russia removed the Taliban's terrorist designationThe Explainer Russia had designated the Taliban as a terrorist group over 20 years ago
