"..Yesterday, an online jihadist magazine confirmed the death of the first reported foreigner to die fighting in the current Gaza conflict. Abu Mohammed al-Marri "came from a town in eastern Saudi Arabia, was a veteran of battles against Russian troops in Afghanistan and in Chechnya as well as against Serb and Croat forces in Bosnia," according to postings on jihadi websites, culled by AFP. He "arrived in Gaza 10 days before the start of the Israeli offensive."Afghanistan? Chechnya? Bosnia? What was a Saudi national with a Qaeda-like resume doing in Hamas’s war with Israel?
Jihadica comes up with 3 answers, here:
1) as a fluke - al-Marri had a Palestinian wife so he may not have been seen as an outsider; 2) as reflecting a decision by Hamas to allow in a Saudi or two to embarrass the Saudis, or 3) as reflecting a strategic decision by Hamas to accommodate more foreign volunteers. Only time will show which one it is.
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