Three London Schoolgirls Who Left for Syria Make Contact With Their Families

Three schoolgirls who left the UK to join the Islamic State (IS) have reportedly made contact with their families this week, yet a woman who claims to be a former senior female commander who defected from the group has warned that she thinks they will die in the Middle East.

In February, Shamima Begum, 15, Amira Abase, 15, and Kadiza Sultana, 16, students from Bethnal Green Academy in East London, flew from Gatwick airport to Turkey and then crossed the border into Syria. Three months after their disappearance, ITV News reported that one of the girls has called relatives to say that she is healthy, safe, and well, yet indicated that the trio have no intention of coming back to the UK. It was also reported that the two other schoolgirls had made contact over the internet.

The news coincides with the release of an interview with a female commander who claims to have defected from IS (also known as ISIS or Daash) a few days ago. Calling herself Um Asmah, she told Sky News that she met the girls on the border, and that they were "very happy" to come to group's base city of Raqqa, Syria. With little prospect that the girls will be able to return home, Asmah said: "I think they will die in Syria or Iraq." It was also suggested during the interview that the schoolgirls are being trained for "special missions."

Related: Families of Islamic State-Bound Schoolgirls Say UK Police 'Let Them Walk Out'

Published today, a joint report by the Institute for Strategic Dialogue and the International Centre for the Study of Radicalisation (ISCR) has examined the profiles of women who have made the journey to join IS, including that of Amira, one of the London schoolgirls.

The report suggests that is incorrect to label the young women as "jihadi brides," since there are a range of factors which "push and pull" them.

"Ultimately, these women believe that joining ISIS in Syria will secure their place in paradise, give them the opportunity to take part in the construction of a utopian society, while also providing those sensations of adventure, belonging and sisterhood. It is largely these three interlocking factors that provide crucial motivation for migration to Syria," the report states.

An analysis of social media accounts of the women who have travelled to join IS reveals how some have faced being "domestically isolated in severe conditions, and the realities of living within a war zone in a terrorist-led territory."

The report goes onto state how the "vast majority occupy very traditional, domestic roles within ISIS society" and that their first responsibilities are to be a "good wife to the jihadist husband" and a "mother to the next generation of jihadism." Yet the report recognizes that these women do have a role in disseminating propaganda and recruiting other women.

The report also recognizes that IS has increased its effort to draw in women. Earlier this year, a document by female Islamic State supporters of the al Khanssaa Brigade, circulated online, only confirms what kind of role women are expected to fulfil under IS.

Translated by the Quilliam Foundation, a counter extremism thinktank, it reads: "But, as God wanted it to be, she was made from Adam and for Adam. Beyond this, her creator ruled that there was no responsibility greater for her than that of being a wife to her husband."

It continues: "There is no need for her to flit here and there to get degrees and so on, just so she can try to prove that her intelligence is greater than a man's."

The ICSR report has also put forward a number of recommendations on how to tackle extremism, including preventative measures such as providing young people with critical thinking skills, and developing awareness of propaganda online and offline. It also notes how there are few female mentors in prevention and deradicalization programs.

The Quilliam Foundation also recognizes the importance of regular engagement with young people without making them feel alienated or targeted, as well as the importance of critical thinking for young people.

Speaking to VICE News, political liaison officer Jonathan Russell said: "Equipping young people with critical thinking skills is not a traditional counter terrorism measure, but it clearly has a benefit in the long term.

"We should be educating our young people to think for themselves and to challenge conspiracy theories and to challenge extremist narratives, and to not be manipulated in the way that they often are by radicalizers or by recruiters."

Follow Jenna Corderoy on Twitter: @JennaCorderoy