Muslim mothers are breathing a sigh of relief at the death of Sally-Anne Jones – we feared she would target our daughters

The instantly recognisable female star of Isis glamorised her world by posing with Kalashnikovs and pistols, advertising a new way of life that could be achieved through the means of violence

Sally-Anne Jones, a prolific online recruiter for Isis, has reportedly been killed in an airstrike outside of Raqqa (Twitter)

Social media is celebrating today.

The Sun was the first to break the news that 48 year old Sally-Anne Jones, infamously also known as the White Widow, was killed in a drone strike in June 2017. The reports claim she was trying to flee Raqqa, the self-declared Isis capital, as it came under bombardment from US-backed coalition forces.

The common sentiment on Twitter seems to be one of good riddance, while the radio stations debate whether it was permissible, both morally and legally, to kill Jones’ twelve year old son in the same strike.

In some other homes around the land, there is a different reaction.

And it is one of collective relief.

It is coming from the British Muslim women who feared that their own teenage daughters might come under the spell of the White Widow as she targeted them with tales of utopia, far away from the Islamaphobia that girls in a hijab regularly face.

Born in Greenwich, the former Punk musician converted to Islam and travelled to set up her home with Isis in 2013. In Syria, Jones went by the name “Umma Hussain al Britani” and “Sakinah Hussain”. She took her underage son JoJo with her and renamed him Hamza. She married Junaid Hussain, who was later killed in 2015.

Jones’ activities promoting violence against non-Muslims soon led to her being described as “Britain’s most wanted woman” and made her a top priority on the Pentagon’s “Kill List”. She herself was said to have preferred the description “Leading a Battalion of Jihadist Women” as she was responsible for securing European female terror recruits. She did this by using a number of Twitter accounts to lure western teenagers to Syria.

Propaganda is a necessary tool in war, and Sally-Anne Jones was the face of the drum beating. The instantly recognisable female star of Isis glamorised her world by posing with Kalashnikovs and pistols, advertising a new way of life that could be achieved through the means of violence. When I first saw her picture dressed as a nun with a gun, I thought it was a still from an upcoming movie, rather than a British woman with a mission to recruit vulnerable teenage girls to her cause.

A case example of British girls who fell for the Isis propaganda is one from 2015. In February of that year, Britons were shocked by the headline news that three ordinary British Muslim girls had run away from their homes in East London to join Isis. And no one was more shocked than the Muslim community itself.

Sixteen year old Kadiza Sultana and fifteen year olds Amira Abase and Shamima Begum all attended Bethnal Green Academy in Tower Hamlets. Their actions revealed the true extent of the threat of terror grooming that Muslim youngsters were facing. There was only disbelief that ordinary British girls were willing to give up their western lives with all its freedom, choices and advantages to live in a place where tales of sex slaves and rape were plenty.

Contrary to what a lot of people think, British Muslims are concerned about terrorists targeting their children as terror recruits. As in all forms of grooming, it is hard to spot until it is sometimes too late. Like child abuse grooming, steps are taken to maintain control, which include gaining trust, filling an emotional need and isolating the victim from family and friends. In an online situation, this is hard to monitor and control.

Still, the British Muslim community has taken steps where it can. As recently as 5 June 2017, following the terror attack in Manchester Arena, a joint statement from over 130 Muslim faith leaders was issued to condemn the attack. They also made public their refusal to perform funeral prayers for the terrorist, Salman Abedi, on the grounds that he “defiled the name of our religion and of our Prophet, who was sent to be a mercy to all creation”.

For a young person groomed to believe that an act of terror will be a stepping stone to heaven, the refusal to be granted Muslim prayers in death is significant.

I don't know if Sally-Anne Jones’ remains were granted funeral prayers. I'm not sure that many will care. I am sure though that there is only relief from the British Muslim mothers whose daughters she targeted for a life of violence.