More than £5,000 in mispaid housing benefit was used to fund an Islamic State terror cell linked to the Paris and Brussels attacks, a court has heard. However, the court heard that details of the tenancy termination were not passed to the Benefits Service, which kept paying housing benefit for another year. Ahmed then withdrew a total of £5,050 from the account in 16 instalments of £300 and one of £250, the court heard. The bank account details showed he was receiving £238.20 a fortnight in housing benefit and £136.20 a month in child benefit. Maes left Britain in September 2014 and made her way to Syria to join her husband, the court heard.

Source: The Guardian November 25, 2016 13:10 UTC