Three British sisters are feared to have travelled to war-torn Syria with their nine children, one of whom is aged as young as three.
The news emerged as calls mounted for more to be done to tackle radicalisation of teenagers online after 17-year-old Talha Asmal was reported to have become Britain's youngest ever suicide bomber.
It was also revealed today that Thomas Evans, a Muslim convert from Buckinghamshire, is believed to have died fighting in Kenya fighting for extremist group Al Shabab.
It is feared 12 members of the Dawood family, from Bradford in West Yorkshire, travelled to Syria where it is understood one of their relatives is fighting for extremists.
According to Balaal Khan, a lawyer acting for the fathers of the missing children, sisters Khadija Dawood, 30, Sugra Dawood, 34, and Zohra Dawood, 33, left Britain on May 28 to go on an Islamic pilgrimage to Saudi Arabia.
They travelled with their nine children, aged from three to 15, and were supposed to return to the UK on June 11.
Their family have not heard from them in almost a week, and it is believed that on June 9 they boarded a flight from Madina in Saudi Arabia to Istanbul in Turkey - a commonly used route into Syria.
Khan said: "They are concerned that their children's lives are in danger.
"The concern is for the well-being and safety of the children. The fathers are distraught, they feel helpless and they don't now what to do. They want the children out of harm's way."
"The suspicion, and main concern, is that the women have taken their children to Syria," said Khan.
He said police were notified five or six days ago, but are limited in what they can do because it is out of the jurisdiction.
A West Yorkshire Police spokeswoman confirmed they have received a missing persons report concerning the Dawood family.
Share
