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| British teenager's attempt to join Isis in Syria foiled by undercover reporter | |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| A British schoolgirl has been prevented from fleeing to Syria to marry an Islamic State fighter after covert attempts to recruit her online were exposed by an undercover reporter. | A British schoolgirl has been prevented from fleeing to Syria to marry an Islamic State fighter after covert attempts to recruit her online were exposed by an undercover reporter. |
| The 16-year-old from east London was on the verge of travelling to the conflict-torn country via Switzerland and Turkey in an elaborate plan orchestrated by her older sister, who left London for Syria last year. | The 16-year-old from east London was on the verge of travelling to the conflict-torn country via Switzerland and Turkey in an elaborate plan orchestrated by her older sister, who left London for Syria last year. |
| Scotland Yard said it had taken steps to ensure the safety of the “vulnerable young girl” and that she was now being monitored by the government’s heavily criticised anti-radicalisation programme Prevent. | Scotland Yard said it had taken steps to ensure the safety of the “vulnerable young girl” and that she was now being monitored by the government’s heavily criticised anti-radicalisation programme Prevent. |
| The detailed plot was uncovered by a Daily Mail reporter posing as a young girl on Twitter, who was then asked by an Isis recruiter to accompany her younger sister to Syria. | The detailed plot was uncovered by a Daily Mail reporter posing as a young girl on Twitter, who was then asked by an Isis recruiter to accompany her younger sister to Syria. |
| Radicalisation experts said a stronger counter-narrative to Islamic State’s propaganda needed to be offered to curb the increasing number of young radicals attempting to join the terror group. | |
| Charlie Winter, a researcher at the counter-extemism thinktank Quilliam, said the US-led coalition carrying out air strikes in Syria and Iraq should be more open and specific about its actions in order to deter would-be extremists from entering the dangerous terrain. | |
| “The coalition could give more information about the airstrikes,” he said. “It makes it less appealing. People want to join an army that’s very successful.” | |
| Islamic State portrays its “caliphate” as a “utopia” and not enough was being done to challenge or question this, Winter said. “Islamic State messaging and propaganda is going uncontested,” he said. | |
| Winter believes social media networks and chat apps are not to blame and more needs to be done to deal with the “girls and boys who find this ideology attractive”, Winter added. | |
| “If you’re interested it’s very easy to be totally absorbed by Islamic State propaganda.” | |
| Metropolitan police commander Richard Walton, from the force’s counter-terrorism command, said officers were made aware of the vulnerable girl on Monday. | Metropolitan police commander Richard Walton, from the force’s counter-terrorism command, said officers were made aware of the vulnerable girl on Monday. |
| “Upon receiving the information, officers acted promptly and were able to identify the girl concerned and preventative steps have now been taken to do all we can to safeguard her,” said Walton. “We are working closely with her family and the local authority to ensure she is supported and kept safe from harm.” | “Upon receiving the information, officers acted promptly and were able to identify the girl concerned and preventative steps have now been taken to do all we can to safeguard her,” said Walton. “We are working closely with her family and the local authority to ensure she is supported and kept safe from harm.” |
| Within hours of setting up the Twitter profile, more than 100 other accounts had connected to it and conversations with Isis recruiters started within days. Discussions swiftly moved to encrypted messaging apps Kik, Surespot and Telegram. | Within hours of setting up the Twitter profile, more than 100 other accounts had connected to it and conversations with Isis recruiters started within days. Discussions swiftly moved to encrypted messaging apps Kik, Surespot and Telegram. |
| Related: Isis 'controls 50% of Syria' after seizing historic city of Palmyra | |
| In a conversation transcribed by the Mail, the Isis recruiter attempts to persuade the undercover reporter to travel to Syria with her sister. | In a conversation transcribed by the Mail, the Isis recruiter attempts to persuade the undercover reporter to travel to Syria with her sister. |
| The undercover reporter was asked to meet the girl on 27 May at Leyton station and travel to Gatwick, where the deserting pair would catch an easyJet flight to Basel, Switzerland. | The undercover reporter was asked to meet the girl on 27 May at Leyton station and travel to Gatwick, where the deserting pair would catch an easyJet flight to Basel, Switzerland. |
| In Basel, the runaways would stay in a guesthouse before catching a flight to Istanbul, Turkey, from where they would travel 700 miles by coach to a safehouse in Gaziantep near the Syrian border. | In Basel, the runaways would stay in a guesthouse before catching a flight to Istanbul, Turkey, from where they would travel 700 miles by coach to a safehouse in Gaziantep near the Syrian border. |
| A “brother” would then escort them to Tal Abyad in Syria by 30 May and on to Raqqa, Isis’s self-proclaimed capital. | A “brother” would then escort them to Tal Abyad in Syria by 30 May and on to Raqqa, Isis’s self-proclaimed capital. |
| The recruiter urges the undercover reporter to “delete all pictures from your phone of yourself in hijab or niqab” and to leave any copies of the Qur’an behind. | The recruiter urges the undercover reporter to “delete all pictures from your phone of yourself in hijab or niqab” and to leave any copies of the Qur’an behind. |
| The home secretary, Theresa May, said the case showed the “seriousness of the threat we face from Isil”. | The home secretary, Theresa May, said the case showed the “seriousness of the threat we face from Isil”. |
| “The police and security service are working hard every day to keep our country safe, but it is up to all of us to stand united against extremism, support the pluralistic values that underpin our society, and stop young and vulnerable people from being drawn into this kind of trouble.” | “The police and security service are working hard every day to keep our country safe, but it is up to all of us to stand united against extremism, support the pluralistic values that underpin our society, and stop young and vulnerable people from being drawn into this kind of trouble.” |
| More than 700 British extremists are thought to have travelled to Syria – and around half to have returned to the UK. Detectives estimate around 60 women have fled to the country, half of which is under the control of Isis, including around 20 teenagers. | More than 700 British extremists are thought to have travelled to Syria – and around half to have returned to the UK. Detectives estimate around 60 women have fled to the country, half of which is under the control of Isis, including around 20 teenagers. |
| In February, Bethnal Green academy pupils Amira Abase, 15, Shamima Begum, 15, and Khadiza Sultana, 16, fled their homes to join Isis. | In February, Bethnal Green academy pupils Amira Abase, 15, Shamima Begum, 15, and Khadiza Sultana, 16, fled their homes to join Isis. |