On Wednesday, two men, three women and four children were reportedly arrested by the Turkish army in the southern province of Hatay.
"I was shocked, worried and extremely upset to hear that my son has been arrested on the Turkey/Syria border,” Shakil Ahmed, Labour councilor in Rochdale, said in a statement as quoted by the media on Thursday.
According to the councilor, he thought his son, Waheed, studying a degree in politics and sociology at Manchester University, was on a work placement in Birmingham.
"If I thought for a second that he was in danger of being radicalised I would have reported him to the authorities,” Ahmed stressed.
He said that among other people arrested in the party were Waheed`s aunt, two of her sons and one of Waheed`s wives with two of their children.
The UK citizens are reportedly awaiting deportation to the United Kingdom.
Many European citizens, including British nationals, have recently travelled to Syria and Iraq to join extremist groups, such as Islamic State. The group’s intensive propaganda efforts on social networking websites especially target young people.
In March, a 21-year-old woman and, separately, three British girls were detained after arriving in Turkey illegally.
About 600 British residents are currently fighting alongside ISIL, according to the London-based International Center for the Study of Radicalization and Political Violence.
The Islamic State is a jihadist group notorious for its human rights abuses, multiple kidnappings and killings. In 2014, it took large areas in Iraq and Syria under its control and proclaimed a caliphate. The group’s affiliates also operate in North Africa, Yemen, Pakistan and Afghanistan.
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