Islamic State's Tareena Shakil to be sentenced for terror offences

The first British woman to be found guilty of joining Islamic State is due to be sentenced today.

Tareena Shakil, 26, from Birmingham, fled to Syria with her toddler son in October 2014 and was taken to the capital of the caliphate in Raqqa.

During her two-week trial at Birmingham Crown Court, the jury were shown tweets, messages and photographs from her, including images of the black flag of IS and passages calling on people to "take up arms", and stating her wish to become a "martyr".

Photographs recovered from Shakil's phone showed images of her wearing an IS balaclava, and posing with firearms.

The jury heard Shakil, formerly of Burton-upon-Trent, Staffordshire, told her family she was going to Turkey for a beach holiday with her young son but secretly travelled across the border into Syria after wishing to live under sharia law.

She told the court she returned to the UK in February last year after realising she had "made a mistake" and was arrested at Heathrow Airport.

Shakil, who was also found guilty of encouraging acts of terrorism through messages posted on Twitter, is due to be sentenced at Birmingham Crown Court this morning.