Only 25 terrorist suspects are subject to orders freezing their British assets, even though at least 600 homegrown jihadists have left to fight in Syria and Iraq.
In total, just £61,000 in 59 bank accounts belonging to suspected terrorists has been blocked by the Treasury, according to a new report.
The report, by David Anderson, QC, the independent reviewer of terror legislation, showed that another 28 people have had r bank accounts in Britain frozen under European orders.
The number subjected to the Treasury financial orders has fallen sharply, from 162 in 2008.
Of the 25 people targeted by the Treasury, only eight are linked to Syria. Four are already in prison in Britain.
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Mohammed Emwazi, the former London schoolboy who was unmasked as “Jihadi John”, the Isis murderer, is one of hundreds who has escaped a freezing order. He does not feature on any of the asset freezing orders issued by the government.
In his report, Mr Anderson concludes that figures for assets frozen were “remarkably low”.
He says they indicate that asset-freezing has played only a “marginal role” in combating “the most serious terrorist threat of the present time”.
Travel to and from conflict zones, together with the preparation of terrorist acts, often requires funding and facilitation, he reports.
“There has been an attempt to use asset-freezing legislation to respond to the threat posed by UK residents who travel to and from Syria and Iraq for the purposes of terrorism.
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“But bearing in mind that over 600 Britons have travelled out there, the small number of designations indicates that asset-freezing has played only a marginal role in combating the most serious terrorist threat of the present time.”
The comments come as the identity of a 15-year-old London schoolgirl who led her three best friends to Syria after becoming radicalised was revealed.
Sharmeena Begum fled Britain to join Islamic State in December - and was the first of four GCSE pupils at the same school to become jihadi brides.
She is believed to be in the Isis stronghold of Raqqa with three other Bethnal Green Academy pupils, Kadiza Sultana, 16, Shamima Begum, 15, and Amira Abase, 15, who travelled to Syria last month.
The revelation comes after Lord Prescott reportedly blamed the former prime minster Tony Blair for “bloody crusades” in Iraq and Afghanistan that have led to the radicalisation of a generation of young British Muslims.
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He reportedly said: “I was with Tony Blair on Iraq. We were wrong.
“They told us it wasn’t regime change. It was. And that’s exactly what the Americans have had.
“Now Tony, unfortunately, is still into that. I mean, the way he’s going now, he now wants to invade everywhere.
“He should put a white coat on with a red cross and let’s start the bloody crusades again.”