Mps Warn on Growing Numbers of UK Takfiris
Local Editor
"Not enough was being done to prevent people leaving the UK to join "ISIL", a group of MPs has warned.
Keith Vaz, chairman of the Home Affairs Select Committee, said Britain must win their "hearts and minds".
The committee's report came as the BBC launched a database tracking British Takfiris in Syria and Iraq.
It showed that many people left in clusters from certain UK areas - often due to friendships and peer groups.
The MPs' report argued that preventative work with communities, families and international partners was "vital" and needed to be a top priority for the Home Office.
"The number of cases being brought to public attention should ring alarm bells," said Labour MP Vaz.
"This must be a relentless battle for hearts and minds, and without a strong counter-narrative we are in danger of failing to prevent even more departures. We are at the edge of a cliff."
The BBC had been tracking the stories of the men, women, boys and girls who had gone to Syria and Iraq to understand why they went, where they go from and what happens to them.
By analyzing around 160 profiles, it revealed the way in which people had travelled in clusters - a group of three young friends from Coventry, another group from Portsmouth, drawn out by one person they knew, others in Cardiff linked to people involved in an extremist organization.
Social media might play a part but face-to-face contact appears just as, if not more, important, according to the database.
Source: News Agencies, Edited by website team
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