British Muslim family barred from plane

  • 23/12/2015
(Reuters)
(Reuters)

British Prime Minister David Cameron is to examine the case of a British Muslim family who planned to fly to Disneyland but were prevented from boarding the plane with no explanation.

The family of 11 were to board a flight bound for Los Angeles at London's Gatwick airport, but US officials stopped them, even though they had been granted travel authorisation online ahead of their mid-December trip, The Guardian reports.

US Homeland Security officials have not commented on why the family was stopped from entering the country.

The family planned to visit cousins in Southern California and to go to Disneyland.

Their experience has drawn wider attention over a rising number of British Muslims being barred from the US without reason.

The case has been raised by British Labour MP Stella Creasy, who says lack of information from US authorities is fuelling resentment within British Muslim communities.

"Online and offline discussions reverberate with the growing fear UK Muslims are being 'trumped' – that widespread condemnation of Donald Trump's call for no Muslim to be allowed into America contrasts with what is going on," she wrote for The Guardian.

Mohammad Tariq Mahmood, one of the family members turned away, told The Guardian the airline had said the family they would not be refunded for the cost of their flight.

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