Syria trip pair jailed for preparing terrorist acts

Hanzalah Patel (left) and Safwaan Mansur tried to cross from Turkey into Islamic State-controlled Syria

Two men found guilty of trying to get into Islamic State-controlled Syria to commit terrorist acts have been jailed.

Hanzalah Patel and Safwaan Mansur, both 23, were arrested at an Istanbul hotel in June 2017 after contacting a US agent posing as an IS sympathiser.

The school friends denied preparation of terrorist acts, saying what happened was just "thoughts and banter".

Patel, from Leicester, and Mansur, from Birmingham, were each jailed for 14 years at Birmingham Crown Court.

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Patel, of Frederick Road, and Mansur, of Hampton Road, first travelled to Istanbul in 2016, with the aim of getting into Syria, their trial had heard.

They returned home after a contact failed to answer calls but went back the following year.

In May 2017, Mansur was communicating with a user of the encrypted messaging site Telegram - who was in fact working for the US government - to discuss crossing the border into Syria.

In 2016 the Turkish border became a conflict zone as Islamic State tried to expand

When the two men arrived in Istanbul, the contact told them he would send someone to help but, once they revealed their whereabouts, they were arrested.

A search of their luggage revealed camping equipment and outdoor survival gear, the court heard.

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Lawyers acting for both men said the pair had formed a "naive and idiotic" plan to cross into Syria, but had no intention of fighting or committing acts of terrorism.

Ch Supt Shaun Edwards, of the West Midlands Counter Terrorism Unit, urged anyone concerned of someone they know thinking of travelling to Syria to contact the police.

"The sooner we can intervene, the better chance we have of preventing people from becoming embroiled in the conflict and facing potential prosecution," he said.

Patel and Mansur, who were found guilty last month after a two-week trial, were also sentenced to 12 months on extended licence.