SA: Aussie al-Qaeda fighter a rebel who dabbled in Satanism

AAP General News (Australia)
12-13-2001
SA: Aussie al-Qaeda fighter a rebel who dabbled in Satanism

Captured Australian al-Qaeda fighter DAVID HICKS is a rebel who dabbled in drugs and
Satanism at school before becoming a soldier of fortune, according to people who know
him.

Twenty-six-year-old HICKS, born and raised in Adelaide, is believed to be still held
by the Northern Alliance in Afghanistan on advice from the United States.

HICKS was captured by the alliance on the weekend while fighting for terrorist leader
OSAMA BIN LADEN's al-Qaeda group.

His former neighbours, schoolteachers and acquaintances have described him as an intelligent,
serious man with a rebellious streak.

The federal opposition has called for HICKS to be returned to Australia for trial,
and the Crime Victims Support Association says he should be charged with treason.

But he could also face charges under US law and a spokeswoman for federal Attorney
General DARYL WILLIAMS says his case is being discussed with US authorities.





HICKS left school at the age of 14 and worked as a jackaroo and rodeo rider in the
Northen Territory, before going to Japan for a year to work as a horse trainer.

Soon afterwards he travelled to Kosovo and joined the Kosovo Liberation Army, before
going to Pakistan in late 1999 to further his studies of Islam.

It's believed he was recruited by the Taliban in Pakistan and sent to Afghanistan.

AAP RTV sl/wjf/rp

KEYWORD: TERROR HICKS (ADELAIDE)

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