forced marriage statistics
Nearly 1,200 forced marriage cases were flagged to the Forced Marriage Unit (FMU) in 2017, according to newly released stats.

The report states that since 2012, the FMU has logged between 1,200 and 1,400 cases a year involving weddings across more than 90 countries.

439 marriages took place (or were due to take place) in Pakistan, followed by 129 in Bangladesh and 91 in Somalia.
forced marriage statistics

Despite the large number of weddings being held in predominantly Muslim countries, the report "does not provide a breakdown of reported cases to the FMU by religion" because "no major faith in the UK advocates forced marriage."

In 120 cases the forced marriage was either due to take place in the UK or is the country where the spouse resided.

Shockingly, 355 cases involved victims who were under 18 years of age. A further 353 victims were aged between 18 and 25. In 186 cases, the age of the victim involved was 15 or under.
forced marriage statistics
A statement from the FMU said: "Forced marriage is a hidden crime, and these figures may not reflect the full scale of the abuse."