UK urged to take over "foreign fighters" from Islamic State

A senior US military official called on the UK to recapture ISIS fighters who were "taken to the battlefield" in Syria.

Maj Patrick Roberson, US Special Operations Commander, also called on the government to repatriate two Londoners dubbed the "IS Beatles".

The United Kingdom said El Shafee Elsheikh and Alexanda Kotey had been stripped of their British nationality.

The government negotiates for them to be tried in the United States.

S addressing the BBC from a prison in Syria in August, MM. Elsheikh and Kotey challenged the claim that they had been stripped of their British citizenship.

When asked if MM. Elsheik and Kotey were to be repatriated to the UK, General Roberson replied to the BBC: "We would certainly like them to be."

He said that the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) and the United States "are working very hard to ensure that the original countries recover these foreign terrorist fighters".

Until now, only a handful of them have done it.

General Roberson admitted that it was a decision for each country concerned, but he added: "I think the SDF and we would certainly like them to be repatriated from our country." Where they came from. "

He is the first senior officer in the US military to have publicly called on the UK to take back his nationals and former nationals.

Syrian democratic forces backed by the United States said they captured 700 foreign fighters from more than 40 countries, including the United Kingdom.

The SDF did not specify how many were British – or former British nationals – but it is thought that there are less than a dozen.

Elsheikh and Kotey, who were captured in January, are believed to be part of an IS cell that has been dubbed "The Beatles" by their hostages because of their British accents.

The two men were associated with another Briton, Mohammed Emwazi – also known as "Jihadi John".

He has been seen in a number of high-profile videos on the execution of OI showing the beheading of Western hostages, including American and British citizens.

Emwazi was killed during an American drone strike in Raqqa, Syria, in 2015.

The British government has discussed with Washington officials sending the couple to the United States for trial for alleged involvement in the killing of several hostages.

If they are found guilty, they risk the death penalty.

The two men wondered if they could be stripped of their citizenship and tried in the United States.

General Roberson's comments suggest that the United States would prefer that they be tried in the United Kingdom.

Mr. Elsheikh's mother has taken legal action against the British government.

At a hearing before the High Court earlier this month, government lawyers confirmed that Mr. Elsheikh had been stripped of his British nationality in December 2014.

They argued that there was not enough evidence to prosecute him in the UK.

Mr. Elsheikh's mother challenges the decision of Interior Minister Sajid Javid to share evidence with the US authorities without asking for assurances that the men would not be executed if they were extradited and tried on the spot.