UK Schoolgirl Who Travelled to Syria to Join Daesh «Feared Dead»

Local Editor

One of three schoolgirls who left east London last year to join Daesh [Arabic acronym for "ISIS" / "ISIL"] is believed to have been killed in a Russian air strike in Syria, her family solicitor has said.

Kadiza Sultana was 16 when she left Bethnal Green along with two friends.

Her family's lawyer, Tasnime Akunjee, said they heard a report of her death in Raqqa a few weeks ago.

But he said they had not been able to independently confirm it because of the nature of information from Syria.

Sultana was making plans to return to Britain and her family was communicating with her to discuss her possible escape from Raqqa, according to an interview published by ITV with Halima, Sultana's sister, which includes recordings of purported phone calls between the sisters.

In them, Kadiza said the Daesh militant she had married had been killed, and that she wanted to return to the UK. She also said she "felt scared".

She added: "You know if something goes wrong, that's it. You know the borders are closed right now, so how am I going to get out?"

A fourth girl from the school is believed to have travelled to Syria in December 2014.

Akunjee said the teenager had decided not to risk being captured and facing a "brutal" punishment from the terror group.

He further indicated the family were "devastated" and that it was a "great loss to us all".

Sultana, 16, along with two other friends, flew from London's Gatwick Airport to Turkey on Feb. 17, 2015.

The British Home Office and British Interior Ministry could not be reached immediately for a comment.

The Bethnal Green schoolgirls were among more than 800 Britons who are believed to have left the UK to join Daesh or other militant groups in Syria and Iraq.

Source: News Agencies, Edited by website team