Living In A Land of Disbelief

"No one can fully practice their religion in Canada. Can one talk about jihad in a khutbah [sermon]? They can but soon they will be reported to the authorities by the so-called Muslims."
"[It would be better to live in an Islamic country ruled by a] tyrant [than to live in a] darul kufar (land of disbelief).
Hasibullah Yusufzai, Burnaby, British Columbia

Neighbours speak of the affable young man they knew as such a nice fellow. Roh, his brother, describes him as "harmless". His purpose in travelling abroad was a simple one: to work in a Turkish restaurant. "He never talked to us about anything. Just going to work, going to mosque, coming home", said his sister Katya. And for his neighbours he represented a typical young male Canadian.

The usual drill, a 20-something who drank, smoked marijuana, drove motorcycles, lived with his girlfriend. Why, he even helped elderly neighbours negotiate their groceries. He distinguished himself as the first from Burnaby's Byrne Creek Secondary School to qualify for the province's wrestling championship. A former teacher recalled him as a "polite kid".

"He wasn't that kind of person, actually, to be honest. He wasn't religious", stated Nasir Ahmad-Ali, who knew Mr. Yusufzai for seven years, living in the same apartment building. Charges of attempted jihad were nothing short of amazing. Hasibullah Yusufzai worked as a mall security guard for years and had seriously thought about joining the RCMP.

Then everything about him became transformed as he zealously attended the Al-Salaam Mosque in Burnaby, grew a full beard and wore 'traditional' Muslim clothing. In a February 2013 discussion online about Muslims leaving the West for Islamic countries he wrote that any kind of life in a Muslim country would be superior to living among non-Muslims.

A photo of Hazibullah Yusufzai from his Facebook page. (Facebook)

This is a young man who once revelled in physical exploits, enjoying the freedom and beauty of the world around him in British Columbia, photographed once climbing the Squamish Chief, a popular Vancouver hiking trail. Now he is known as the first Canadian ever to be charged with leaving the country to fight alongside Syrian jihadists.

Last year the Criminal Code was amended under the Combating Terrorism Act which made it illegal to leave or attempt to leave Canada to commit terrorist acts. So Hazibullah Yusufzai is charged, but not taken into custody. The RCMP has no idea where in fact he now is. Have they checked all the Turkish cafes?

"They get all these ideas. These things boiling inside them and they think the solution is, well I'm going to join my brothers and fight for it", stated Riadh Muslih, representative of the Canadian Arab Justice Committee in explaining why and how it is that some new Canadians turn to extremist causes when they become disillusioned with life in their adopted country.