Jihadi who joined ISIS is pleading to RETURN to UK justice after becoming 'disillusioned'

Shabazz Suleman disappeared while on a family
holiday to Turkey three years ago to join the Islamic
State.
He was in Raqqa, the de facto capital of Islamic State,
until its recent fall.
The former grammar school pupil from High Wycombe,
Buckinghamshire, said that he became disillusioned
with jihadism and chose to desert the terrorist group.
In a note in June, he said: “I no longer know who I am.
For years, we have witnessed the atrocities of Bashar
al Assad.
“The barrel bombs, summary executions, the grim
torture videos on YouTube of Syrian skulls being
smashed open with cinder blocks.
The former grammar boy claims he became
disillusioned with ISIS
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“I could not just sit by idly and allow Muslims… to
continue being oppressed. So I did what was in my
capability.
“Protest, fundraise and spread the cause on social
media. Sadly, it was not enough. Another year would
pass and the oppression and killings merely increased.
“The international community had ignored the people
of Syria and had abandoned them shamelessly. It
appeared to me that there was only one final option.
Jihad.”
Via encrypted messages he told the Times he went
through "intense" indoctrination by the group, adding:
"I never thought I was being brainwashed until I saw
the way they treat other Sunnis."
Suleman risked his life to maintain contact on the
agreement that his story not be published until he was
dead or beyond the borders of ISIS’ territory.
He first made contact with the paper under the
assumed name of Abu Shamil al-Britani to justify his
reasons to join ISIS.
He said he disliked the Government and their foreign
policy and rejected democracy as a system of
Government.
However, Suleman claims he grew rapidly disillusioned
and fearful inside the Islamic State.
His father, Afzal Suleman, 46, said he knew "for a fact"
that his son had become a civilian and had not been
on the battlefield for two years.
Palmyra after ISIS
Tue, August 22, 2017
Islamic State fighters in Syria have reportedly
blown up the ancient ruins of Palmyra, an ancient
World Heritage home to renowned Roman-era
ruins.
PLAY
A picture of the Arc du Triomphe before and after
it was destroyed [AFP/Getty Images]
AFP/GETTY IMAGES 1 of 51
Suleman was in Raqqa until its fall
He said: ”He never killed anyone or anything.
"At the end of the day if he has committed a crime he
should go to court. We just want him home."
Suleman is thought to have left ISIS-controlled territory
and is in the hands of a Turkish militia.
He reportedly admits undergoing weapons training and
carrying out guard duties, but denies taking part in
killings.
Speaking from Jarabulus on the Syrian border with
Turkey, Suleman said: “Everyone’s leaving. I got out a
week and a half ago. I spent a couple of months in
Deir Ezzor. I was Awol.
Suleman said ISIS agents hunt deserters
“I got into a car and I drove with one of the fighters
because they were retreating. It was everyone, not
just Isis, it was huge — a mass exodus.
“There was heavy bombing. Isis in Deir Ezzor has
collapsed, everyone’s just running away.
He said that ISIS agents are hunting deserters, he
added: “They kill you if you try to escape. One of the
smugglers told me he was not meant to be helping me
because they would kill him.”
It comes after Government minister Rory Stewart said
the only way of dealing with British Islamic State
fighters in Syria is to kill them in almost every case.
Max Hill QC, the independent reviewer of terrorism
legislation, called for a focus on "reintegration" in
cases where authorities have decided individuals who
return should not face prosecution.
Mr Hill said it was right the security services have left
space for those who travelled out of a sense of
naivety, at a young age and who return in a "state of
utter disillusionment" to be diverted away from the
criminal courts.
A report released this week said Britain has one of the
largest populations of returning fighters and others
who travelled to join Islamic State.
Around 850 UK-linked individuals "of national security
concern" made the journey to engage with the conflict
in Syria, with just under half of those believed to have
come back.
The figure of approximately 425 returnees is the fourth
highest for individual nations in an analysis published
by the Soufan Centre and the Global Strategy Network

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