New research has revealed the extent of Britain’s Jihadi problem, showing which UK regions are the worst when it comes to ISIS recruitment.
The figures published by the Sun newspaper show that London and South East England lead by quite some distance in terms of the number of individuals who have either joined ISIS or been questioned by police over links to the terror group.
With a total of 25 volunteers and suspects, the South East tops the league table, with coming London a close second at 24. North West England, which includes many urban, industrial areas, also has a problem, with 18 suspects.
Suspects from the South East include at least three who are thought to have died in Syria. Abdullah Deghayes, 18, from Brighton, was killed in battle, while Abdul Waheed Majeed, 41, blew up a jail in a suicide bombing.
Portsmouth has a particularly bad problem, with a total of 12 jihadists coming from that city alone, including two teenage girls.
Londoners include Choukri Ellekhlifi, Mohammed el-Araj and Ibrahim al-Mazwagi, all of whom have been killed in Syria. Another, Abdel-Majed Abdel Bary, is one of the prime suspects in the hunt for the killer of American journalist James Foley.
In the North West, 16-year-old twin sisters Salma and Zahra Halane both travelled from their Manchester home to join ISIS in Syria. Their brother, Ahmed, had already gone to fight in the country.
Meanwhile, Anil Khalil Raoufi, 20, an amateur boxer also from Manchester, was killed in battle in February.
Cardiff, the capital of Wales, has also experience a jihadi problem, with brothers Muthana, Reyaad and Asel Khan fleeing to Syria. A fourth teenager was held by police.
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