This year at least 36 children did not return to the Netherlands from their summer holiday because they had been ‘kidnapped’ by one of their parents and taken to another country, according to the government agency which monitors child abduction.

In 27 cases, the child was taken by the mother, in the remaining nine the father was involved, IKO said in a new report.

Most children were taken to Poland (5), followed by Turkey and Morocco ( four each) and Armenia, Curaçao and Italy (three each). The youngest child was six months old, the oldest 15 and 25 of them should now be at school.

The IKO says divorce is a main reason why parents kidnap a child, mainly because they cannot agree in which country a child should grow up.