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A seven-year-old girl is missing after being "swept away by a wave" while on holiday in Morocco, an MP has said. The girl, who is from Blackburn in Lancashire and was named locally as Inaayah Makda, was sitting on rocks at the beach in the coastal city of Casablanca with her parents when she was hit by a large wave on Wednesday, her family told the BBC.

In a post on social media on Thursday morning, independent MP for Blackburn Adnan Hussain said he had spoken directly with Inaayah's father and aunt to offer his support and that the Blackburn community was "united in hope and prayer" for the girl and her loved ones. He wrote: "I am heartbroken by the news that 7-year-old Inaayah from Blackburn has been swept away by a wave while on holiday in Casablanca.

"My thoughts and prayers are with her family at this unimaginably painful time."

In a separate post, Mr Hussain said he had made "repeated attempts at direct communication" with the Moroccan ambassador and embassy staff but was "incredibly disappointed" with their response.

He added: "After numerous unanswered emails and several attempts to get in contact over the phone, I went directly to the embassy and even after pressing them for over an hour, I was unable to communicate with either the ambassador or anyone from his office."

A Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office spokesperson said: "We are supporting the family of a British national reported missing in Morocco and are in contact with the local authorities."