A former senior government adviser on tackling radicalisation and extremism has defended the right of British Muslims to travel to Syria and fight.
Farooq Siddiqui, a former regional manager for the government's controversial Prevent strategy, said it was acceptable for Britons to "walk the walk" and travel to Syria to fight the forces of President Bashar al-Assad.
As part of a Facebook conversation Siddiqui, 45, defended the right of an individual to be called a martyr if he took up arms against Assad, and questioned whether those who fought against the Syrian president should face arrest upon return to the UK.
Writing on Facebook, in reference to the situation inside Syria, Siddiqui said: "If a man describes himself as wanting to help the oppressed and dies, in that case he is a martyr."
Referring to an individual prepared to travel and stand up for his beliefs, Siddiqui adds: "I'd rather take his word for it because he walked the walk and isn't sat behind a keyboard like me."
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