Nine British nationals detained ‘illegally crossing into Syria’

Nine British nationals detained in Turkey after allegedly trying to cross illegally into Syria could be deported on Thursday.

Footage shows the Britons arriving at a police station in the Southern Hatay province, where they are understood to have been kept overnight.

The group - which reportedly includes three men, two women and four children - were arrested on Wednesday in Hatay province, which shares a border with war-torn Syria.

Turkish MP Mehmet Ali Ediboglu told Sky News: "They are being held at a paramilitary outpost. Probably, they will be deported to their country tomorrow."

The British Foreign Office said it is in contact with the Turkish authorities. The group is believed to include children aged from two to 10 years old.

Three other young British men were detained at the Turkey-Syria border last month. They were tracked down after police were given a tip-off about their alleged plan to enter the country.

A woman was also arrested at the border in March on a separate occasion. In February, an international manhunt started for three schoolgirls who went missing from their London homes. Shamima Begum, Amira Abase and Kadiza Sultana are now believed to be inside Syria after flying to Turkey on a well-trodden path to the country.

They were following another 15-year-old girl who travelled there in December. A High Court judge has since confiscated the passports of four other pupils at the school after concerns were raised by Tower Hamlets Council.

British police believe about 600 Britons have travelled to Syria and Iraq since the conflict began, while around half are believed to have returned to the UK.

PA