Parents 'abandon son, 10, at airport because his passport expired'

A couple abandoned their 10-year-old son at a Spanish airport to go on holiday after realising his passport had expired.

The parents reportedly left their child alone at Barcelona's El Prat international airport on Wednesday and arranged for a relative to pick him up so they wouldn't miss their flight.

The incident was reported by an air traffic coordinator at the airport, who made a TikTok video condemning the schoolboy's parents.

According to the woman, whose video has been watched over 300,000 times on the social platform, said the child was forbidden from flying because his passport had expired and also needed a visa.

But the couple's plan to make their holiday backfired after airport staff found the minor on his own and alerted the police.