Sheffield man jailed after attempting to join Islamic State terrorists in Iraq

He collapsed in court after being sentenced


Shivan Azeez Zangana, who goes by Azeez, of Washington Road, Sharrow, Sheffield, has been sentenced to three years in prison after being found guilty of preparing acts of terrorism.

21-year old, Azeez, and 27-year-old, Aras Hamid, were sentenced in court yesterday after being found guilty on 23 December of plotting to join Islamic State terrorists in Iraq. Hamid was also found guilty in commission of terrorist acts.

A third, 19-year-old, Ahmed Ismail, of Coventry, was also found guilty of failing to disclose information about their plotted acts of terrorism.

Azeez previously fought for Kurdish rebels, but was sent to Sheffield as a refugee by his family for safety after battling extremists. However, during his time in England he was radicalized by Hamid and made arrangements to fight for Islamic State terrorists.

The incidents happened over a short period in May 2016.

Concerned family members expressed fears to the police over Azeez’s behavioural changes and plans to leave the country, prompting them to locate him. One relative claimed Azeez told people he was going to sacrifice himself to God, others said he had stopped going out and listening to music, instead listening to readings from the Quran.

Azeez travelled from his Sheffield home to Birmingham to meet Hamid where he bought a plane ticket to travel from Gatwick to Sulaymaniyah in northern Iraq.

However, the pair were discovered sleeping in a mosque in Birmingham in the early hours of 17 May. Azeez was arrested, and Hamid had items seized from him.

Hamid was initially released after the mosque raid, but was discovered two days later hiding in a lorry on the A2 near Dover, while trying to smuggle himself out of the country using a Bulgarian passport. Consequently, he was arrested.

Later, extremist material was discovered on Azeez’s iPad and iPhone which he attempted to post to Iraq.

Azeez was sentenced at Kingston Crown Court

Yesterday, Azeez was sentenced to three years in jail, with an extended period of 12 months on license at the end of his prison sentence. He collapsed in the dock upon hearing his sentence.

Yet, Judge Peter Lodder QC had told him: “I accept that you were radicalised by Hamid but the material retained on your electronic devices that you attempted to send unaided to Iraq reveals your own commitment.

“Having seen you in the witness box it is clear you are not particularly vulnerable.”

Chief Superintendent Sue Southern, Head of the West Midlands Counter Terrorism Unit said: “There is always a danger that people travelling to Syria and Iraq will be trained and come back and be a threat to the UK. We also need to be aware of the far reaching effects on local communities and the families of those involved.

“In recent months we have seen the dangers of trained terrorists returning to Europe to commit acts of terrorism which emphasises how important it is for officers to prevent travel.”

She continued: “If anyone is concerned that a friend or family member is thinking of travelling to Syria it is very important that they tell us as soon as possible. Police and other agencies can offer support to help safeguard those who are vulnerable to radicalisers.

“The sooner we can intervene, the better chance we have of preventing people from becoming embroiled in the conflict and facing potential prosecution.”