Will foreign fighters in Syria export their jihad? 

By the gates of the great 8th-century Umayyad Mosque in Damascus, a group of Central Asian-looking gunmen stand in the uniform of Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS). It is unclear whether they are visiting or guarding. When I approach, they say they are from ‘East Turkistan’, referring to the Uyghur part of China. Their Arabic is hardly comprehensible, but when I ask in Turkish they speak more fluently.

‘We have been waging jihad in the north in Idlib for ten years,’ the eldest says in a low voice. He looks ten years younger than the age he gives. ‘With the permission of God, we prevailed over the Assad regime. They say we’ll get Syrian citizenship. But we do not want to stay here. God willing, we’ll go and wage jihad against China. We’ll end the misery of our Muslim brothers there.’ He does not want to be photographed but asks me to pray for him and his struggle. The word jihad means ‘struggle’ in Arabic.