CAPE TOWN, Feb. 23 (Xinhua) -- An elderly British couple were kidnapped in South Africa more than a week ago, police said Thursday, amid reports that they were abducted by extremists suspected to have links to the Islamic State group.

The couple, who live in South Africa's second-largest city of Cape Town and have dual British and South African citizenship, were kidnapped on Feb. 12 during their holiday near a popular tourist spot in southern KwaZulu-Natal province.

Local reports said the couple's disappearance was linked to the so-called Islamic State group, while police declined to comment on any such link.

However, they said the two suspects, Sayfydeen Aslam Del Vecchio, 38, and Fatima Patel, 27, faced a charge of kidnapping as well as offenses that fall under an anti-terrorism act.

The United States and Britain warned in 2016 of the possibility of attacks by jihadist extremists in South Africa's major cities. The country has so far been spared the jihadist attacks that have struck several other countries on the continent. Muslims account for just 1.5 percent of South Africa's 54 million people.