Children seized from Islamic academy

12 children have been seized from an Islamic academy by social workers and police.

Social workers responded to a call for assistance from police who had been alerted to the existence of the academy by two children who made a daring escape from the institution.

Upon investigation, social workers found 18 people, including 12 children (aged between 12 and 17), who were being held in a hall with 10 bunk beds.

Social welfare established that the children were not being taught normal schoolwork, but were being made to study the Quran instead at the Academy in Wasbank.

See full story in our sister paper, the Northern Natal Courier.