News / easton
Yusra Hussien: Friends hear from missing girl
The aunt of a missing teenager from Bristol who is thought to have travelled to Syria has said her niece has contacted friends to say she is alive, but will not say whether she has crossed the border into the war-torn country.
Yusra Hussien, from Easton, flew from Heathrow to Turkey two weeks ago with Samya Dirie, a 17-year-old girl from London.
Her parents insisted there was no evidence for claims that she had become radicalised and planning on entering Syria to join with militant Islamic fighters.
But Sucdi Ali said the family was now preparing for a worst case scenario that she might not come home.
In an interview with the BBC, Ali said it looked likely that Yusra had been radicalised online.
“There was no anger, no frustration within her to ask ‘why is this happening in Syria’,” she said. “She was a normal girl with her normal cousins. We’ve given them smartphones, but they don’t share everything with you.
“She wasn’t the type of girl to meet groups outside. She was a home girl. She was radicalised online. Where would all this have come from if not?”
Ali went on to say that her friends had received messages from Yusra.
“She has made contact with friends on Facebook, saying she has moved on to a happy life. But when one of them asked her if she had gone to Syria, she said she can’t disclose that information.
“It’s heartbreaking to hear that she might be in Syria, that there’s nothing you can do and have to let go, knowing you might not see her again.”
She pleaded with Yusra to come home saying she was “not in any trouble at all”.
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