Iraq: 'More Than 1,500' British Jihad Recruits

            

More than 1,500 young Britons may have been recruited by extremists fighting in Iraq and Syria, an MP has told.

Khalid Mahmood said the radicalisation of young British men is a problem that has steadily grown in recent years and could be much more serious than previously thought.

The Birmingham MP's comments suggest the number of would-be jihadists is much greater than ACPO anti-terrorism chief Sir Peter Fahy's estimate of 500 - the highest figure previously mentioned.

Foreign Secretary William Hague has claimed that around 400 young British men had travelled to the region. 

Mr Mahmood told: "I imagine 1,500 certainly would be the lower end. If you look across the whole of the country, there's been a number of people going across."