British-Born Doctor Was Senior Member of Heavily-Armed Militant Gang That Held Two Photographers Captive at a Camp in War-Torn Syria
26th August 2012
An NHS doctor on leave from a London hospital was part of a heavily-armed extremist gang who took a British journalist hostage in war-torn Syria.
The Kalashnikov-toting doctor – believed to be around 28 – told photographer John Cantlie he had taken a sabbatical from his medical work to come to Syria and fight a ‘holy war’.
The bearded medic, who spoke with a south London accent and said he had a wife and a child back in the UK, told the captive photographer he intended to return to an NHS job in Britain after his time in Syria.
A pointed reminder that a Muslim’s first loyalty is to the Ummah, not to whatever part of the Dar al-Harb in which they might currently be living. There are no British Muslims, merely Muslims living in Britain.