Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.com) -- A 24-year-old resident of Uzbekistan, who was seriously injured during fighting on the side of terrorists in Syria, was detained and taken back to Uzbekistan, the State Security Service (SSS) said.

Originally from Jizzakh region, the young man spoke about how he joined extremist groups.

He began listening to audio and video lectures by preachers Abdulloh Zufar and Sodiq Samarkandi on the Internet, after which he met a member of the terrorist organization “Katiba Tawhid Wal Jihad” in Syria at the direction of his friend.

In June 2023, to avoid the attention of law enforcement, he bought an expensive ticket to Istanbul and immediately flew out. Upon arrival, he was met by a guy named Muhammad, who took him to Idlib. In June 2023, they crossed the border and entered Syrian territory.

The State Security Service noted that the Uzbek citizen, who came from Türkiye to Syria, underwent ideological and military training among members of the terrorist organization Katiba Tawhid Wal Jihad. However, he was later seriously injured as a result of military operations carried out by the Syrian army. After recovery, he was involved in economic work in a terrorist organization.

“I spent 35-40 days in the hospital in critical condition. The conditions were difficult: they didn’t give me food, I didn’t eat anything for about 15-20 days. Medicines were not provided on time. Even when I was lying down, people came to us and started preaching. They explained how hijra and jihad take place. They said that we must fight the infidels. They taught us that the Syrian state oppresses us and that we must resist them,” the guy said.

In December 2023, he was detained while trying to cross the border from Syria into a neighboring country for treatment and was taken to Uzbekistan. A criminal case has been initiated against the young man under articles 155-2 (training, travel or travel to carry out terrorist activities) and 244-2 (creation, leadership, participation in religious extremist, separatist, fundamentalist or other prohibited organizations) of the Criminal Code of Uzbekistan. He was taken into custody.