The al-Nusra Front, a terrorist group in Syria, released a video of the first American to participate in a suicide attack in the war-torn country. Monar Mohammed Abu-Salha, 22, grew up in Florida and dropped out of college to join the jihad. In the video, he explains why he wants to die.
“I want to rest in the afterlife, in heaven. There is nothing here, and the heart is not resting,” he said. “Heaven is better. When people die they either go to heaven or hell. There is happiness beyond explanation.”
On May 25, Abu-Salha, along with a Maldivian and Turkistani, drove a truck filled with explosives to Idlib and blew up the al-Fanar restaurant, a popular place with Syrian soldiers. A fighter with the terrorist group praised Abu-Salha.
“He was a generous, brave, tough man, always on the front lines in battles,” said Abu Abdulrahman. “When his turn came up… [Abu Huraira] was very happy, because he will meet his God after that.”
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" layout="responsive" width="600" height="480">The New York Times reported the Arab American lived in Fort Pierce and Vero Beach in Florida. His parents are based in Vero Beach where they own several grocery stores.
Abu-Salha adopted the name Abu Hurayra al-Amiriki; al-Amiriki means “the American.”
The al-Nusra Front split from the Islamic State in Iraq and Sham (ISIS) and “pledged allegiance directly to al-Qaeda and Ayman al-Zawahiri.”