NEW DELHI // An Indian student who travelled to Iraq to join the ISIL has returned home disillusioned after militants made him clean toilets and do other menial jobs, according to media reports.
Areeb Majeed, 23, left for Iraq with three friends in late May amid fears by authorities that ISIL militants were attempting to recruit from India’s large pool of young Muslim men.
The engineering student flew home on Friday to Mumbai where he was arrested and charged by India’s elite National Investigation Agency (NIA) with terror-related offences.
Mr Majeed told NIA officers he was sidelined by the militants for whom he fetched water and performed other lowly tasks such as cleaning toilets, instead of taking part in the deadly offensive like he wanted, the Press Trust of India news agency reported.
He phoned his family to say he wanted to come home after suffering an unexplained bullet wound for which he did not get proper medical attention, the agency said late Sunday.
“Only after I begged them, I was taken to a hospital,” he was quoted as saying by NIA officers. “There was neither a holy war nor any of the preachings in the holy book were followed.”
India’s moderate population of 150 million Muslims have traditionally not been drawn into sectarian conflicts in the Middle East and elsewhere, but the case of the four raised concerns about online recruitment.
Al Qaeda announced in September a new chapter of its extremist movement charged with creating unrest in South Asia, prompting several Indian states to be placed on high alert.
Tanvir Sheikh, the father of one of Mr Majeed’s friends who was still missing in Iraq, said he felt betrayed by his son.
Mr Sheikh said his son Fahad was offered a job in Kuwait but instead decided to travel to Iraq to join the extremists.
“He had got a job offer from Kuwait with a salary of three lakh rupees (DH 17,630) but he ignored that and instead took up arms. Now what happens to his future?” Mr Sheikh told the Indian Express newspaper on Monday.
“I feel let down by my son. He had a bright career ahead of him but he took advantage of our love and betrayed us.”
Radicalised foreigners have been drawn to the ISIL group, which has conducted a series of mass executions and other atrocities since launching its offensive in Iraq and Syria in June.
* Agence France-Presse
Other workplace saving schemes
- The UAE government announced a retirement savings plan for private and free zone sector employees in 2023.
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- National Bonds unveiled a Golden Pension Scheme in 2022 to help private-sector foreign employees with their financial planning.
- In April 2021, Hayah Insurance unveiled a workplace savings plan to help UAE employees save for their retirement.
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Game Changer
Director: Shankar
Stars: Ram Charan, Kiara Advani, Anjali, S J Suryah, Jayaram
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Afcon 2019
SEMI-FINALS
Senegal v Tunisia, 8pm
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Paatal Lok season two
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Quick pearls of wisdom
Focus on gratitude: And do so deeply, he says. “Think of one to three things a day that you’re grateful for. It needs to be specific, too, don’t just say ‘air.’ Really think about it. If you’re grateful for, say, what your parents have done for you, that will motivate you to do more for the world.”
Know how to fight: Shetty married his wife, Radhi, three years ago (he met her in a meditation class before he went off and became a monk). He says they’ve had to learn to respect each other’s “fighting styles” – he’s a talk it-out-immediately person, while she needs space to think. “When you’re having an argument, remember, it’s not you against each other. It’s both of you against the problem. When you win, they lose. If you’re on a team you have to win together.”
German intelligence warnings
- 2002: "Hezbollah supporters feared becoming a target of security services because of the effects of [9/11] ... discussions on Hezbollah policy moved from mosques into smaller circles in private homes." Supporters in Germany: 800
- 2013: "Financial and logistical support from Germany for Hezbollah in Lebanon supports the armed struggle against Israel ... Hezbollah supporters in Germany hold back from actions that would gain publicity." Supporters in Germany: 950
- 2023: "It must be reckoned with that Hezbollah will continue to plan terrorist actions outside the Middle East against Israel or Israeli interests." Supporters in Germany: 1,250
Source: Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution
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Dubai Hurricanes 58-10 Dubai Knights Eagles
Dubai Tigers 5-39 Bahrain
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WHAT IS A BLACK HOLE?
1. Black holes are objects whose gravity is so strong not even light can escape their pull
2. They can be created when massive stars collapse under their own weight
3. Large black holes can also be formed when smaller ones collide and merge
4. The biggest black holes lurk at the centre of many galaxies, including our own
5. Astronomers believe that when the universe was very young, black holes affected how galaxies formed