Lisa Smith's offending was at 'lowest level' and her sentence was 'excessive', appeal told

The former soldier's defence counsel said: "There is nothing beyond that she kept house for a man who did not even regard her as a person."

Despite the risks to her, Lisa Smith (pictured) spoke out against Isis when Professor Anne Speckhard, an expert in violent extremism, came looking to interview those in the camps, the appeal court heard. File picture: Niall Carson/PA

Former soldier Lisa Smith, who was convicted earlier this year of membership of Isis, was at the "lowest level" of the terrorist organisation and her sentence of 15 months was "excessive", her lawyers have told the Court of Appeal.

Appealing the sentence, Michael O'Higgins SC, for Smith, told the three-judge court that his client went to Isis-controlled Syria "got married, kept house and that's it." He said she went out of a religious conviction, "did not contribute to any state-building exercise and did no positive act in favour of Isis."