‘Soft’ social workers failed to spot brothers were radicalised
Damning report after tearaway teenagers killed fighting in Syria
TWO teenage brothers killed fighting in Syria converted to militant Islam under the noses of ‘soft’ social workers.
A report has found that youth workers, council officials and police missed chances to stop members of the Deghayes family joining a group aligned to Al Qaeda.
They failed to spot Abdullah Deghayes, 18, and Jaffar, 17, were at risk of being radicalised before they boarded one-way flights to the Middle East.
They were free to leave even after their older brother Amer, who became a poster boy for forces aligned to Islamic State, left the UK on an aid convoy.
The teenagers, whose uncle Omar received £1million compensation after being held in Guantanamo Bay for five years, were soon killed in battle.
Abdullah was hit by a sniper as he chased retreating forces in April 2014 and Jaffar died during a firefight six months later.
Yesterday, a serious case review said officials missed signs of radicalisation despite monitoring the family for years.
The three brothers, and two other siblings, were notorious in Brighton where they ran amok after dropping out of school. They were linked to a violent crime wave as well as burglary, theft, drug dealing and countless reports of antisocial behaviour.
The inquiry found police did not share information on the teenagers because they suspected social workers were ‘ too soft’ and because of secrecy around terrorist operations. The inquiry found ‘no official recognition’ that the boys were being radicalised and news they had travelled to Syria triggered ‘shock and confusion’. It raises questions over whether politically correct officials failed to successfully intervene in the Muslim family because of the complex social and religious background. And it suggests officials focused on the family’s complaints that they were the victims of racism.
In 2007 Omar was released from Guantanamo Bay but his return to Brighton led to an angry backlash from residents.
Graffiti reading ‘Behead all Muslims’ was daubed near their home, protesters dressed up as Osama Bin Laden and their house was attacked by a mob.
As the boys grew up, they not only began living lives of petty crime but showed disturbing signs of extremist beliefs.
In 2010, officials drew up plans to protect the children after they revealed their father made them get up at 4.30am to study the Koran. They told police of repeated physical abuse but no charges were brought when they withdrew their statements.
In 2013, a school and youth worker also raised concerns that young people were converting to Islam helped by the brothers.
By this time the boys had formed a gang of their own, led by Abdullah, which was notorious for attacking foreign students, including an Italian boy who was blinded. Edi Carmi, a child protection expert who wrote the report, said: ‘There was no recognition that any of the siblings were becoming vulnerable to being exploited into radicalisation.’
Graham Bartlett, who leads the local safeguarding children board, said local professionals had not identified any risk.
He added: ‘ There was and remains no evidence to indicate how they were radicalised.’