The disappearance of a 15-year-old London girl in Malaysia is being treated as an abduction and a missing person case by police, a charity says.

Nora Quoirin, who has special needs, arrived there with her family on Saturday for a “trip of a lifetime”.

But on Sunday her parents awoke to find she was missing.

The Lucie Blackman Trust, which is supporting the family, said police were searching and investigating in the resort and surrounding areas.

Nora, who is the daughter of an Irish-French couple who have lived in London for around 20 years, was staying with her family at the Dusan resort in a nature reserve near Seremban, 39 miles south of the capital Kuala Lumpur.

The Lucie Blackman Trust (LBT) said her father raised the alarm when he discovered her missing from her bedroom at 08:00 local time on Sunday.

‘Fear for safety’

Speaking from Belfast, Nora’s aunt Aisling Agnew said: “Nora’s parents and relatives in Ireland and France are distraught by her disappearance.

“Nora is a child with special needs and has learning and developmental disabilities which make her especially vulnerable and we fear for her safety.

“Nora would not know how to get help and would never leave her family voluntarily.

“We now consider this a criminal matter.”

Nora, whose mother Meabh is originally from Belfast and whose father is French, is understood to have been traveling on an Irish passport.

Family friend Catherine Cook said: “It’s out of character for Nora to go wandering off.”

She added: “I’m a mother and I burst into tears just hearing this story. I cannot imagine the hell that they are living right now. I just ask for anyone who can help them to do so as soon as possible.”

A spokesman for the Irish Department of Foreign Affairs said: “We are aware of the case and are providing consular assistance.”

The LBT has provided a hotline and email address for information.

People can remain anonymous and can call +448000988485 or email [email protected]