Youth who was radicalised in two months with online videos is located on the Costa del Sol

The Guardia Civil have located and rescued a 15-year-old girl from an unknown European origin who was making a stopover in Malaga before heading to North Africa to become one of the wives of the jihadist caliphate. The minor, who had been reported missing by her family, had been radicalised through online videos.

The girl is now safe with her family, after the Guardia Civil tracked her down at Malaga Airport on 24 June. Having converted to Islam, she was wearing a black hijab, robe and gloves. On her, she had just a backpack, a small bag and a forged authorisation from her mother, which allowed her to get as far as the capital of Costa del Sol. She had neither money, nor a return ticket. When asked what she was doing in Malaga, she said that she intended to stay in a hotel for a few days to go sightseeing and to swim in the sea.

It was the fake authorisation that caught the police officers' attention. During an interrogation, they discovered that she had converted to Islam only two months prior to her journey and that she had been recruited by extremist group Islamic State (IS) through online videos. The radicalisation process, carried out by an 'agent', had quickly isolated her from family and friends with the ultimate aim of controlling her behaviour and mindset.

Now that she is back with her mother, the girl will undergo a recovery process. Her case serves as a warning about the dangers of the internet and what lurks behind the screen.