First photos of 'ordinary Yorkshire lads', believed to have travelled to Syria to join Isis, emerge
Families of Hassan Munshi and Talha Asmal have appealed for the teenagers to come home
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The first photographs of the two “ordinary Yorkshire lads” who are thought to have travelled to Syria to fight for Isis have been released by their families.
Hassan Munshi and Talha Asmal, both 17-year-old, were last seen by their families in Dewsbury, west Yorkshire, on the 31 March before travelling to Turkey.
Earlier this week the families of the two boys released a statement pleading for information surrounding their disappearance and warning other families it was “near impossible” to catch the warning signs of radicalisation.
The two boys are the latest of an estimated 600 Britons who are believed to have travelled to Syria to fight for the extremist group Isis, also known as Islamic State.
"Naturally, we are in a state of profound shock and are trying to come to terms with the predicament we find ourselves in and we hope and pray that no other family finds itself in our situation,” read a statement released by the two families on Tuesday.
"These were just two ordinary Yorkshire lads who enjoyed the things that all young people enjoy at their age - both Hassan and Talha had a promising future, as an apprentice and an A-level student respectively, and we are praying they will be back with us soon and are able to realise that future."
A West Yorkshire police spokesperson confirmed to The Independent that they were “working with” the two families, but appeared in the dark regarding the release of the images.
Mr Munshi is believed to be related to Hammaad Munshi, arrested by counter-terrorism police in 2006 at just 15 and later convicted after a plot to murder non-Muslims was unveiled, The Times reported.
In a statement released earlier this week Assistant Chief Constable Mark Milsom said he was “extremely concerned” for the two boys’ safety and urged anyone with information to contact West Yorkshire police.
Additional reporting by Press Association