STREET entertainer Michael Mime today admitted he believed his half-Iraqi daughter could be dead as he continued his efforts to find her.

Michael, who lives in York, is now in Syria after an attempt to cross into Iraq from Turkey was unsuccessful.

He has been meeting Kurdish politicians in an attempt to gain support for his mission.

But Michael Mime - real name Michael Todd - said he was terrified by strongly anti-British feeling in the Syrian capital, Damascus.

He said: "Things are not good. I am not safe here and I have been told by the British embassy that, under no circumstances, should I reveal where I am from. I have travelled a lot, but I have never seen anything like this.

"I'm pretending to be from Northern Ireland, but I'm still getting a lot of trouble."

Michael's estranged daughter was born after he had a relationship with an Iraqi woman.

He said: "I am more concerned than ever about her. Realistically, I have to accept that there is a good chance that she is no longer alive, but I will continue with my attempts to find her."

Michael was donated cuddly toys for his daughter and other Iraqi children by Evening Press readers in York after they heard of his attempt to enter Iraq to find her.

He said: "I've got them with me at the moment and they give me a lot of comfort.

"I want the people who are thinking of me to know that I'm still alive, but I'm suffering."

He said he had been met sympathetically by the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP), which controls parts of north Iraq. He now needs to get clearance from Syrian intelligence, which he said the KDP was applying for on his behalf.

"I knew before I came here that the president of Syria had made a declaration of solidarity with the Iraqi people so I was expecting it to be hostile, but not to this level," he said.

"I think once I get into Iraq, to the bits which the KDP control, it will feel safer."

Michael moved into Syria after he came close to being arrested for attempting to cross the Iraqi border from Turkey.

He said his plan was to contact Red Cross stations in the war-torn country and speak to families displaced by the conflict to see if he can get news of his daughter.

If he finds out nothing he will attempt to travel further into Iraq.

"I don't know how long I'll be there, but I know it could be quite a long time," he said.

Updated: 10:36 Thursday, April 10, 2003