A ten-year-old schoolboy was questioned by police after a misspelling aroused his teachers’ suspicions.
Teachers reported the boy for suspected terrorist links after he misspelled the words “terraced house” and wrote “terrorist house.”
His teachers did not realise it was a spelling error, and under the 2015 Counter-Terrorism and Security Act, teachers are obliged to report anything suspicious.
According to the BBC, the boy was interviewed and a laptop found at his family home was examined.
His family have since demanded an apology from both the school and the police, and allege that the boy has been traumatised by the experience.
A cousin of the child, who has not been named, told the BBC: “You can imagine it happening to a 30-year-old man, but not to a young child.
“If the teacher had any concerns it should have been about his spelling.
“They shouldn’t be putting a child through this.
“He’s now scared of writing, using his imagination.”
Regarding the controversial Counter-Terrorism act, Miqdaad Versi, assistant secretary-general of the Muslim Council of Britain said:
“There are huge concerns that individuals going about their daily life are being seen through the lens of security and are being seen as potential terrorists rather than students.”
The school told the BBC it was unable to comment because it was investigating a complaint over the incident.
Lead image via BBC.
