UK to help well-intentioned jihadists returning home to stop others from joining conflict

The UK would help jihadists returning from Iraq and Syria if they had ''good intentions'' about stopping others joining the conflict, the Conservative leader of the Commons, said, Press Association reported.

William Hague,  Leader of the House of Commons, in a change of tone said that some would just need help as they had been through an extremely traumatic period while fighting overseas.

The idea of banning radical Islamist fighters from returning to the UK had been initially floated by Downing Street, though, the proposal was dropped when it emerged that it would be illegal to make people stateless.

Hague seemed to soften the rhetoric of the government on the subject as he spoke on the BBC1's Andrew Marr Show on Sunday, saying, ''We haven't had a lot of people coming back yet and saying they want to be of assistance, but if they do, of course, the government, the police, the National Health Service will work with those people and help them to recover and to assist others,'' he said.

''Our top priority has to be the security of the people of this country and that is why we will take action. Where we think people could be dangerous, we confiscate passports. We're working on additional powers to be introduced in parliament. There have been over 200 arrests this year related to people going to Iraq and Syria."