If haters of tyranny went out to Syria to fight for freedom against the despotic...

[sandyRoe]

...al Assad, how would they be treated by the authorities when they returned here? Would they be freedom fighters or terrorists?
And if someone collected funds for the Syrian opposition could they be extradited to the USA to face charges of supporting terrorism?

[youngmafbog]

In a purist world I would say on the fighting front should depend on whether or not a Syrian national, otherwise no different to terrorism, collecting of funds is blatant support of terrorism.

However Syria is now at war, civil war. I don't see how you can classify a fighter as a terrorist if it is war.

[sandyRoe]

The people who fight for Al Qaeda see themselves as being in a war and not as terrorists.

[douglas9401]

It all depends on which lot our masters want in their gang at any given time sandy.
The Northern Ireland Assembly being a case in point. Sworn enemies to elected representatives practically overnight.

[jno]

they'd be arrested, and have just been

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-19892869

I don't quite get this. We want Assad to step down, but apparently anyone who tries to do something to encourage this will be stopped.

[sandyRoe]

William Hague: "This is not something we recommend, and we do not want British people taking part in violent situations anywhere in the world."
That include Afghanistan?

[jno]

does it even include the streets of South London?

[ichkeria]

I don't know, but I would be very surprised if they've been arrested merely because they were involved in the fighting in Syria.
The inability of the UNSC to intervene (because of vetoes exercised by certain members) has led to a situation now where there are many embittered and extreme elements fighting there. It's not beyond the bounds of possibility that some of these elements might attract individuals from the UK who are already suspected of being involved in terrorism.
If you go to Syria merely as an opponent of the regime and take a pot shot at a government soldier, or even vice versa, then it's unlikely that you'd be arrested on your return as you wouldn't have broken any law in this country.

[jake-the-peg]

Compare and contrast with those who went to fight in the Spanish Civil war (on both sides) !

[jno]

or indeed the sheltering of French resistance fighters (and De Gaulle).

[Kromovaracun]

""That's not something we recommend, and we do not want British people taking part in violent situations anywhere in the world," he said."

I think this is quite a strange thing for a Foreign Secretary to say. If British people want to "take part in violent situations" in places like Syria, it's hard to see how exactly the government can order them not to do it. It's okay if we want to be violent in foreign countries through the officially-sanctioned channels though.

[emmie]

the trouble with the statement is who is fighting tyranny, after all some see Assad as a good leader, and those fighting him as rabble. As to those who leave Britain to fight for the rebels, does this mean they would ever fight for Britain if it came to a war with Syria, where would their allegiance lie.

[argorstran]

Well here's a link to Syria's main news agency SANA . It might help you decide whether Assad is a tyrant or not and whether the terrorists are freedom-fighters or not . Link :
http://sana.sy/index_eng.html

[sandyRoe]

Reports are suggesting that one of the two arrested was a doctor who'd taken time off from his job in the NHS to lead a 'terror group' in Syria.
What is it with Syria and the NHS? Wasn't Assad an eye surgeon here before he left to lead his country?