British teens may be in Syria

Police fear Islamic State has lured two more young Britons to join its cause.

LONDON – British police fear two teenage boys who recently vanished from their homes have entered Islamic State-controlled territory in Syria.

Authorities said Tuesday that they were “deeply concerned” for the welfare of the pair, who have not been seen since March 31 and would be the latest in a growing list of young Britons to travel to the Middle East to join the militants.

One of the teens is believed to be the brother of Britain’s youngest convicted terrorist, Hammaad Munshi, who was 15 when he was arrested on his way home from school by counter-terrorism police in 2006. He had downloaded instructions for how to make napalm and was convicted under the Terrorism Act in 2008 for being part of a plot to kill non-Muslims.

The missing boys were widely named by British news media as Hassan Munshi and his close friend Talha Asmal, both 17, who lived close to each other in the northern English town of Dewsbury. Police would not confirm or deny the reports.

Police said the boys took advantage of spring break to slip out of the country on a flight from Manchester to the Turkish city of Dalaman, where they are thought to have crossed the border by land to Syria.

They told their families they were going on a school trip, but alarm bells went off when they did not respond to calls and messages on their cellphones.

“Our priority is for their safe return; their families are gravely worried about them and want them home,” Assistant Chief Constable Mark Milsom of West Yorkshire police said.

“Syria is an extremely dangerous place, and the public will be aware of the dangers these boys may face.

British authorities believe as many as 600 Britons have traveled to Syria or Iraq to fight alongside the militants, and are increasingly worried about the number of young people being radicalized. Boyle is a special correspondent.