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Man held for allegedly helping British schoolgirls cross into Syria

A man has been detained for allegedly helping three British schoolgirls cross into Syria, Turkey's foreign minister has said.

The man worked for the intelligence services of a country in the US-led coalition fighting Islamic State (IS), Mevlut Cavusoglu is quoted by Turkish media saying.

Shamima Begum, 15, Kadiza Sultana, 16, and 15-year-old Amira Abase, all students at Bethnal Green academy in east London, fled the UK last month to reportedly join IS.

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Man held over Syria girls worked for coalition country

From top left: Kadiza Sultana, Shamima Begum and Amira Abase Credit: Metropolitan Police

The man arrested for allegedly helping three British schoolgirls cross into Syria was working for a coalition country, a Turkish official has claimed.

The official, who declined to be identified, told Reuters the spy was now in custody, adding that the man was not from the country concerned.

"The person was working for the intelligence agency of a coalition country but is not a citizen of that country," the official told the news agency. "The person was not a Turkish citizen either."

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