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When Bilel Zouaidia’s father began to worry that his son was being pulled into a radical lifestyle, he took away his passport.

So Zouaidia, 18, who had taken lessons in Arabic and the Qu’ran under the guidance of Adil Charkaoui at Collège de Maisonneuve, went to the police station, reported his papers stolen and applied for a new passport.

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Zouaidia is one of six teenagers from Montreal and Laval — four men and two women — reported missing since Jan. 16, when it is believed they boarded a flight to Turkey, where it is feared they crossed into Syria bound for a new life as jihadi fighters.

In fact, authorities believe there are other young Montrealers — they won’t specify exactly how many — who have gone missing and who may have joined forces with Islamic State or other terror factions.

Parents, police and analysts say the challenges are huge in identifying individuals at risk of becoming radicalized and stopping them before it is too late.