thestar.com

U.S. government documents and interviews with Hubayshi, now living in Saudi Arabia and working at a utilities company, provide a rare look into the mind of a man who trained for religious warfare, never fought in combat and now says he believes in the political process. But "if the government had not helped me marry and get my job back," he said, "I might be in Iraq now."

In 1995, Hubayshi was a 19-year-old college student looking for more meaning in his life. Bin Laden was a hero to many Muslims, and aiding Muslims in distress seemed like the most admirable and altruistic route. Hubayshi was initially inspired by a fiery taped sermon, but a series of videotapes produced by Arabs fighting in Bosnia completed his transformation.

By 1999, the fighting in Afghanistan had become mostly ethnic. He packed his bags to return to Saudi Arabia. "I was not there ... to help Afghans fighting Afghans for political gain," he said. "If I was going to die, I wanted to die fighting for something meaningful."