Schools fear Easter holiday exodus of teenagers joining Isil in Syria

From the Telegraph

Schools fear that their will be an exodus of teenagers joining jihadist in Syria over the Easter holidays, but have not told police as they do not want their pupils to be criminalised, it has been claimed.

Nazir Afzal, a senior prosecutor, claims that he has been approached by the heads of two London secondary schools, one in east London and one in west London, over fears that their students have been “seduced and groomed” by Islamic State (Isil).

However, they have not contacted the authorities about the concerns, raised by the teenagers’ parents, because they do not want them to be investigated.

Mr Afzal told the Times that one said he was being “approached on a daily basis by parents who fear their kids are about to go to Syria”. He added: “Both said they were scared of the Easter break and would be very relieved if all their pupils come back after the holidays.” 

During a three-month Times investigation, reporters posing as schoolgirls were offered money for flights by Isis recruiters and advised to wait until the school holidays so as not to arouse suspicion.

Mr Afzal, who stood down yesterday as the chief crown prosecutor for northwest England, said that the two head teachers who had recently spoken to him “had no idea what advice to give the parents” and had complained about a lack of “face-to-face support” for young people who fall prey to online radicalisation.

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