London school girls missing, suspected of travelling to Syria
Police are appealing for help to find three schoolgirls believed to have travelled to Turkey with the intent of crossing the border into Syria.
They fear the girls, students from east London’s Bethnal Green Academy, could be heading to join the Islamic State terror group.
They are Shamima Begum, 15, who could be using the name Acklina Begum, and 16-year-old Kadiza Sultana. The third girl, 15, is not being named at the request of her family, Scotland Yard said.
The girls boarded a Turkish Airlines flight to Istanbul on 17 February, departing from Gatwick at 12:40pm. They had left their homes by 8am, having given their families plausible reasons as to why they would be out for the day, police said.
Commander Richard Walton, of Scotland Yard's counter terrorism unit, said in a public appeal: “We are extremely concerned for the safety of these young girls and would urge anyone with information to come forward and speak to police.
"If we are able to locate these girls whilst they are still in Turkey, we have a good possibility of being able to bring them home to their families."