Bradford family to meet Vaz

Photo Credit: Telegraph
Photo Credit: Telegraph

Home Affairs Committee chairman Keith Vaz is due to meet the husbands of two of three Bradford women thought to be in Syria with their nine children.

It is claimed they were encouraged to contact their brother – thought to be fighting with extremists in Syria.

West Yorkshire Police said it rejected the suggestion officers were complicit reports BBC.

Khadija, Sugra and Zohra Dawood and their children, aged between three and 15, went missing on 9 June. An Islamic State (IS) smuggler has since told the BBC they have reached Syria.

Speaking to the Mail on Sunday, Mr Vaz said the lawyers’ claims were “concerning”. He later issued a statement confirming he would meet Mr Iqbal, Sugra Dawood’s husband, and Mohammed Shoaib, husband of Khadija Dawood.

He told the BBC: “There is always a problem, which we identified in the last parliament, where the families left behind feel they need to be informed and kept updated on what’s going on. The difficulty for the authorities of course is they are ongoing investigations.

“But it is important to listen to what they have to say, which I will do, and then decide what further action needs to be taken.”

The Home Office said it had received the letter and would respond in “due course”.

“Our priority is to dissuade people from travelling to areas of conflict and the Prevent strategy is working to identify and support individuals at risk of radicalisation,” the Home Office said in a statement.