The announcement of a formal Islamic state by insurgents in Syria and Iraq is a "declaration of war against the West and al Qaida", an expert has warned. The Islamic State in Iraq and Greater Syria (Isis) group has sought to solidify its leadership of worldwide jihad today by declaring that its leader, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, is the new caliph, or head of state.
Abu Mohammed al-Adnani, a spokesman for the group, called for those living in the area under the group's control in both countries to swear allegiance to Baghdadi.
Around 500 British-linked citizens are already thought to have travelled to the Middle East to fight with the Sunni Muslim group against its Alawite and Shia sectarian foes amid fears that more will join them.
Islamic extremists have long aspired to recreate the Islamic caliphate that ruled over the Middle East for hundreds of years.Over the last two weeks there has been growing concern over the number of young British Muslims who have joined Isis. David Cameron claimed that they represent the "biggest threat to national security that exists today".
Several youths who are believed to have travelled to the Middle East to fight have been identified, rocking Muslim families and communities in towns such as Cardiff, Aberdeen and Coventry.
The security services have made tracking British jihadists fighting in the region their top priority after a video emerged showing Britons filmed in Syria urging UK Muslims to join insurgents there and in Iraq.
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