Child refugee brides as young as 12 ordered to STAY with men they were forced to marry

CHILD brides as young as 12 have been ordered to stay with the men they were forced to marry after European officials agreed to recognise the partnerships.

It comes amid fears of a paedophilia epidemic inside European refugee camps after a pregnant 14-year-old girl went missing from a Dutch centre.

Girls as young as 12 have been married off to older men in Syria

Fatema Alkasem disappeared along with her 24-year-old husband in August and police are concerned the Syrian girl needs medical care.

The Netherlands is facing an issue of providing asylum to young girls who are married in their homeland but are below the Dutch age of consent.

Alkasem went missing in August and police fear she needs medical attention

Dutch asylum centres are reportedly housing 20 child brides aged between 13 and 15, while three a week on average are arriving to the country.

The brides were granted legal permission to join their older partners after the country recognised marriages involving young teenagers if they are officially registered in their home country.

But some have slammed the recognition by Dutch authorities, claiming it condones paedophilia because the age of sexual consent in the Netherlands is 16.

Outraged Dutch Labour MP Attje Kuiken said: "A 12-year-old girl with a 40-year-old man - that is not a marriage, that is abuse.

Dutch authorities plan to change the laws on young bride asylum seekers

"We're talking about really young children, girls 12, 13 years old. I want to protect these children."

The Dutch government is amending family laws so that reunification applications only accept marriages when both partners are at least 18-years-old.

But Ms Kuiken called on the government to do more for young Syrian brides until the law is changed in December.

According to Breitbart she said: "The government should take them into foster care and protect them, because before the new law comes into force, they can still be subject to abuse.

In other EU member states, such as Germany, child brides that arrive to claim asylum are treated as unaccompanied minors.

During the asylum process they can apply for a recognition of the marriage, however the individual circumstances are considered.