“Came all the way to Istanbul and my family deceived me by saying my mom was in the ICU so I rushed back. My friend however is decided to carry on without me and is now in Antakya…”“Criminal Complaint,” United States District Court, Southern District of Texas, May 25, 2015, http://www.justice.gov/file/441346/download.

“I wanna die as a Shaheed [martyr].”“Criminal Complaint,” United States District Court, Southern District of Texas, May 25, 2015, http://www.justice.gov/file/441346/download.

“I saw the picture of sharia court established in Falluja. So if I went to Baghdad and went to Falluja from there, could I meet up with ISIS?”“Criminal Complaint,” United States District Court, Southern District of Texas, May 25, 2015, http://www.justice.gov/file/441346/download.

“All I know is that I want to fight fisabillah [jihad].. Who knows how long this fitna [struggle] will last? What if I miss my chance? I don’t want to fight for war booty or for nationalism. I want to just rise the laws of Allah and be a shaheed [individual who dies for Allah] in his cause. I don’t want to be fighting with the wrong group, and so far all I see is ISIS fighting for Khilafah [an Islamic state].”“Criminal Complaint,” United States District Court, Southern District of Texas, May 25, 2015, http://www.justice.gov/file/441346/download.

“…And then after taking training with them we can go on the front lines in Damascus.”“Criminal Complaint,” United States District Court, Southern District of Texas, May 25, 2015, http://www.justice.gov/file/441346/download.

“I wanna join ISIS, can you help?”Lindsay Dunsmuir, “U.S. man charged with conspiracy to provide support to Islamic State,” Reuters, May 26, 2015, http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/05/26/us-usa-security-islamicstate-idUSKBN0OB20220150526.

“Love for shahada is so strong. Okay well do some research on ISIS (islamic state of Iraq and sham).”“Criminal Complaint,” United States District Court, Southern District of Texas, May 25, 2015, http://www.justice.gov/file/441346/download.

In reference to staying in America or going to Syria because of financial issues:

“…but now…I’m back to going, so I’m kinda like scrambling.”U.S. District Court for the Western District of Texas, “United States of America v. Michael Todd Wolfe, aka ‘Faruq,’” Los Angeles Times, June 27, 2014, http://documents.latimes.com/michael-wolfe-complaint/.

In reference to deciding to travel to Syria:

“It’s not that I don’t want to go, I just need to figure out the best situation.I would rather leave than sit…I’m getting too comfortable sitting here.”U.S. District Court for the Western District of Texas, “United States of America v. Michael Todd Wolfe, aka ‘Faruq,’” Los Angeles Times, June 27, 2014, http://documents.latimes.com/michael-wolfe-complaint/.

“The Americans do not trust us because we resisted them during the occupation. There is no prospect [for cooperation].”Samia Nakhoul, “Iraqi militia leader says U.S. not serious about fighting Islamic State,” Reuters, July 28, 2015, http://www.reuters.com/article/us-mideast-crisis-iraq-khazali-idUSKCN0Q22ED20150728.

“We do not agree to participate in any area where there are American strikes. We will place full responsibility on the American administration for any strike that happens under the guise of being a mistake.”Samia Nakhoul, “Iraqi militia leader says U.S. not serious about fighting Islamic State,” Reuters, July 28, 2015, http://www.reuters.com/article/us-mideast-crisis-iraq-khazali-idUSKCN0Q22ED20150728.