John Profumo's grand-nephew arrested by terror police after fighting against Isis in Syria

Supporters say government should stop 'criminalising' British volunteers with Kurdish YPG

Jamie Janson, 42, in a video taken by the Kurdish People's Protection Units (YPG) in Syria in March 2018 (YPG)

A British man who travelled to Syria to fight against Isis has become the latest volunteer to be arrested on suspicion of terror offences.

Jamie Janson, who is the great-nephew of scandal-hit 60s war minister John Profumo, was stopped by police when he arrived back in Britain on a coach from France on Tuesday.

The 42-year-old said he was kept in a cell overnight in Kent before being released while the investigation continues.

Scotland Yard confirmed Mr Janson was the subject of an investigation by its counter-terrorism command and said his arrest was “related to the Syrian conflict”.

Supporters were outraged by his treatment, which comes after the arrest of several other volunteers with the Kurdish People’s Protection Units (YPG).

Mr Janson said he fought with the group against Isis in its former stronghold of Deir ez-Zor, before moving into battle against Turkish-backed forces attacking the Kurdish-held northern city of Afrin in March.

In a video message posted online in that month, he said he wanted to defend civilians against the assault, which saw Turkey eventually retake the area from the US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces amid allegations of indiscriminate bombing and war crimes.

“We international volunteers are standing with our friends in Afrin against the forces of tyranny and aggression,” he added.

When news that Mr Janson was in Syria emerged, his father Martin Janson told the BBC he was “very proud”.

Mr Janson is believed to have escaped Afrin during the ongoing battle and travelled through Syria to Iraq, where he caught a flight to Belgium and carried on towards the Dover ferry.

Police arrested him on a bus in the Kent port of Folkestone and there has not yet been a decision on whether he will be charged with an offence.

Pro-Kurdish campaigners were angered by the arrest, which comes after former British soldier James Matthews and father-of-one Aidan James were charged with attending terror training camps after fighting with the YPG.

Mr Matthews was the first person to be prosecuted for fighting against Isis, although one man has been sentenced for attempting to join the YPG and other volunteers have been arrested on their arrival back in Britain and released, or charged for unrelated offences.

The government has issued repeated warnings that fighting for any group in a foreign conflict could result in prosecution, but YPG volunteers have defended themselves by saying they are fighting with UK-backed forces against Isis.

But the situation has become more complicated since the start of intensified confrontation with Turkey, a Nato ally, which itself classes the YPG as a terrorist group linked to the Kurdistan Workers’ Party.

The father of former Royal Marine Konstandinos Erik Scurfield, who became the first British volunteer killed fighting with the YPG in 2015, told The Independent the arrest of Mr Janson “sends a great message to Isis”.

“There should be interviews but why arrests?” Chris Scurfield asked. “I see volunteers reluctant to return to the UK after supporting democratic forces in Syria. They have terrorism charges over their heads forever, which is even more ridiculous.”

His 25-year-old son is among eight British volunteers who have so far died while embedded with the YPG.

Anna Campbell, 26, was killed by a Turkish air strike in Afrin in March, while Oliver Hall and Jac Holmes, both 24, were killed within weeks of each other while clearing mines in Isis’ former capital of Raqqa late last year.

Mehmet Aksoy, a 32-year-old filmmaker, was killed in an Isis ambush during the battle to retake the city in September and Luke Rutter, 22, and Ryan Lock, 20, died in the same offensive.

Dean Evans, 22, died while fighting to retake the city of Manbij from Isis in July 2016.

Mark Campbell, co-chair of the Kurdistan Solidarity Campaign, accused the British government of implicitly supporting Turkey and weakening the fight against Isis and other jihadi groups.

“Theresa May should spend more time opposing Turkey's aggression against the best fighters against Isis, the Kurds, and less time attempting to criminalise UK anti-Isis volunteers on behalf of the Turkish regime,” he said.

Mr Janson, who previously lived in south-east London, decided to join the YPG after doing voluntary work in the devastated former Isis stronghold of Mosul in Iraq.

He has previously volunteered helping refugees in Dunkirk, Calais, the Greek island of Chios and Serbia, as well as spending time in the Occupied Palestinian Territories and protesting with environmental groups against the oil industry.

Mr Janson is from an aristocratic family, being the grandson of the Countess of Sutherland and great-nephew of Mr Profumo, who was the 5th Baron Profumo.

While serving as the Conservative secretary of state for war in 1961, he had a brief relationship with 19-year-old model and dancer Christine Keeler that would become known as “the Profumo affair”.

There were fears that her previous relationship with a Russian military intelligence officer presented a security threat and after initially denying impropriety with Ms Keeler, he resigned from government and parliament and spent the rest of his life working for a charitable organisation.