German quits 'unhygienic, drug-using' Taliban

[MikeL]

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/europe/germany/9651180/German-quits-unhygienic-drug-using-Taliban.html

German quits 'unhygienic, drug-using' Taliban
A German who volunteered to fight for the Taliban quit after becoming disheartened by the violence and annoyed with the group's macho and drug-taking world.

By Matthew Day1:14PM GMT 02 Nov 2012
The former fighter also complained of the unhygienic conditions in the war-torn lands of Pakistan's Waziristan province and Afghanistan that left him infected with hepatitis, and which were, in his opinion, "incompatible with the teachings of the Koran".
The unflattering portrayal of life in the Taliban came in a statement made by Thomas U. during his trial in Berlin for involvement in a foreign terrorist group.
The 27-year-old had travelled to Waziristan with his wife in the autumn of 2009 with the intention of freeing the area from the "infidel occupiers" after the couple had converted to Islam.
On encountering their Taliban recruiters they had to hand over £4,000 they had raised in Germany through fraud as a donation to a cause which promised to conquer the whole of Afghanistan in a year.
But Thomas U. soon became disheartened, especially after seeing the remains of three fellow Germans killed by Pakistani army shelling.

"The sight of their badly mangled bodies moved me," he said. "I was scared and I wanted to get out. Waziristan was not what I was looking for." Underlying his dislike of his new life was the Taliban propensity to use drugs, and their "macho" attitude to women. In one case a Taliban fighter went to the German widow of a dead comrade and told her that she would marry him. The proposal was made without any consultation with her, "as if she was just an object" said Thomas U. in his statement.
In September 2010 the couple fled Pakistan and made their way to Turkey, where they were arrested.
Thomas U., has since turned his back on radical Islam and lets his wife "dress anyway she wants".
"I regret leaving Germany and regret my crimes," he told the court.

 

[Journeyman]

There are just too many ":facepalm: " items in this article to comment.  I'll leave it at  :

 

[Jarnhamar]

Come on, he's letting his wife dress how she wants, she's not an object anymore.  He's a changed man.

 

[medicineman]

I can think of only one thing to say to this person..."DUH".

MM

 

[brihard]

On the one hand, great life-decisions fail.

On the other hand, this is fantastic counter-propaganda to be used in helping to counter the appeal of violent radicalism to those who, however messed up their ideas may be, still think of themselves as ideologically pure and virtuous.

 

[jeffb]

This guys sentence should be to go on a speaking tour to every mosque, madrassa on a speaking tour outlining why he quit. The retribution here gained by jail time is not as important as leveraging people like this to prevent future jihadists.

 

[brihard]

This guys sentence should be to go on a speaking tour to every mosque, madrassa on a speaking tour outlining why he quit. The retribution here gained by jail time is not as important as leveraging people like this to prevent future jihadists.

Well said.

 

[GnyHwy]

The only problems with sending him on a speaking tour is that no one will give a crap what he has to say.  He's a loser no matter how you look at it.

To all the moderates who don't need to hear him anyway, he is just an ill informed, weak minded moron.

To all the radicals he is a weak coward. 

 

[Journeyman]

To all the moderates who don't need to hear him anyway, he is just an ill informed, weak minded moron.

To all the radicals he is a weak coward.

It's the people on the margins between both groups who will benefit. I think jeffb has a great idea.

 

[winnipegoo7]

http://www.timesofisrael.com/former-neo-nazi-who-joined-taliban-happy-to-be-in-german-jail/

He was apparently a neo-nazi before joining the Taliban.

 

[Jarnhamar]

I want to agree but I  can't.

Lets say a guy rapes a women and goes to jail. In jail he gets raped and has an epiphany, getting raped isn't nice.  He then wants to go out into the world and tell everyone that raping women is infact bad and it's mean.  Would we support that?  I know I would say screw that lock him up for as long as possible, to hell with his enlightenment.  It seems like a lot of people learn their lesson after getting caught.

This guy sounded like an idiot before it was noted he was a neo-nazi.  An idiot hitting himself in the head with a hammer then telling people not to hit themselves in the head with a hammer
1. won't make people (smart enough not to hit themselves in the head with hammers in the first place)  go out and do it; and
2. won't stop idiots from going out regardless and hitting themselves in the head with hammers, then putting it on youtube.