© BELGA
–
—
Jejoen Bontinck has given a striking interview to the British public broadcaster BBC. The young man who fled to Syria in 2012 and was a star witness in one of the biggest terrorism trials, wants to develop a music career.
Little remains of the devout Muslim with unkempt hair. With glitzy golden glasses and American accent, Jejoen Bontinck gave an interview to the BBC. “I don’t sing about fat cars and pretty women. My rap is a different kind of rap. I have a story to tell. An extraordinary story, ”he tells a camera crew in his home.
He produced his first album: ‘Born again’ under his stage name Ready4Jerri. Still a quip to Sharia4Belgium. “My friends, new people I meet, I always have to explain myself. I have to say it was different from what they read. And that is sometimes hard for people to believe. That’s okay. ”
Read more below the photo
–© Screenshot BBC
–
Bontinck says that he was thrown in prison his first day in Syria and only got out seven months later. “I wanted to go to Syria, because my friends were there. My so-called friends, because once I got there, they turned out to be armed to the tooth. And I didn’t want to participate and so I was put in jail, ”he says. He tells about how he was imprisoned with the journalists James Foley and John Cantlie. The latter is still missing.
Does he have nothing to fear now that he raps and talks about his time as a Syria fighter? “I have nothing to fear anymore. I’ve been through the worst things. If they wanted me dead, I would already be dead. ”
Bontinck emphasizes that he regrets the choices he made as an eighteen-year-old. “I would say: don’t do it. Listen to your parents, stay away from Sharia4Belgium. I thought I was just going to lectures and classes, but actually I was completely indoctrinated. ”
Jejoen gained world fame mainly through his father Dimitri, who wanted to bring his son back personally.
(nba)
—
