Family appeal to find Ben Needham, 25 years on

Ben was 21 months old when he vanished from outside a farmhouse his grandfather Eddie was renovating in a village on the Greek island of Kos on July 24, 1991.

Sunday will be the 25th anniversary of his last confirmed sighting.

The Help Find Ben Needham Facebook group posted a message saying: “Having a missing child is not just an event, it’s an indescribable journey of survival.

“!Unbelievably this Sunday, 24th July 2016 will be 25th Anniversary of Ben’s disappearance. Please change your profile picture to this new one and show the world your support for ‪#‎missing‬ ‪#‎BenNeedham‬.”

The news comes as the campaigners call for people to go over old information. They say they want to keep Ben in the public eye and jog people’s memories.

Earlier this week it was revealed that DNA tests have been used to help rule out 30 men suspected of being Ben.

Since April last year, when South Yorkshire Police set up a specialist team to investigate the disappearance of Ben, officers have eliminated 30 people.

The team said there are a small number of others who still need to be eliminated.

A South Yorkshire Police spokeswoman said: “Since launched our investigation in April 2015 to support Greek authorities in the on-going search to find Ben, we have carried out extensive enquiries and explored a wide range of enquiries.

“We have eliminated over 30 people who were suspected to have been Ben using DNA and other means.

“Enquiries continue regarding a small number of other people who still need to be eliminated.

“Nearly 3,000 people have been spoken to during the course of the investigation and hundreds of people have come forward with information to help our inquiry.

“The investigation is on-going and we remain committed to finding answers for Ben’s family about what happened to him 25 years ago.”

Ben was 21 months old when he vanished from outside a farmhouse his grandfather Eddie was renovating in a village on the Greek island of Kos on July 24, 1991.