London school girl who joined ISIS reportedly killed

A family solicitor has said that Kadiza Sultana, one of three school girls who travelled to Syria to join ISIS is feared dead. Sultana left her home in Bethanal Green in 2015, along with two school friends. According to her family's lawyer, Tasnime Akunjee, they had heard a report of that the schoolgirl had been killed by a Russian air strike in Raqqa. However, they are yet to independently confirm the news. Akunjee maintained that Sultana had grown scared and wished to return to the UK, however had decided against leaving due to the risk of being captured and facing ‘brutal’ punishment. The family’s lawyer explained: "The problem with that was the risk factors around leaving are quite terminal also, in that if ISIS were able to detect and capture you then their punishment is quite brutal for trying to leave. "In the week where she was thinking of these issues a young Austrian girl had been caught trying to leave ISIS territory and was by all reports beaten to death publicly, so - given that that was circulated in the region as well as outside - I think Kadiza took that as a bad omen and decided not to take the risk." Mr Akunjee added: "I think she found out pretty quickly that the propaganda doesn't match up with the reality." A spokeswoman for the Foreign Office commented: "The UK has advised for some time against all travel to Syria. As all UK consular services there are suspended, it is extremely difficult to confirm the status and whereabouts of British nationals in Syria. "Anyone who does travel to these areas, for whatever reason, is putting themselves in considerable danger."