George Washington university hires former chief al-Qaeda recruiter to research counter-terrorism

Jesse Morton, who was once called Younus Abdullah Muhammad, recruited men for al-Qaeda, some of whom are now fighting for Isis

Jesse Morton said the amount of guilt he suffers from his past 'sickens' him (YouTube)

A man whose recruits for al-Qaeda are now fighting on behalf of Isis has just been hired by the research department of an American university.

Jesse Morton, who was known as Younus Abdullah Muhammad, once denounced the US and made threats against the creators of television show South Park for depicting the Prophet Muhammad in a bear suit.

He has now been employed by George Washington University to write and research counter-terrorism, which is a first for a US university, as reported by CNN.

Seamus Hughes, deputy director of the program on extremism at the university’s centre for cyber and homeland security, said the new employee would offer a “unique perspective” to the department.

“We haven't figured out how to reach that individual who's going down the path of radicalisation,” Mr Hughes said.

“Jesse has been in that world and got out of that world.”

Mr Hughes said he talked about Mr Morton with the FBI, security leaders and the lawyers that prosecuted him, and he was assured that Mr Morton was fully reformed.

He was born in Pennsylvania and was a choir boy at his grandmother’s Baptist church.

He came from an abusive home and searched for radical groups, and was arrested twice on drug-related charges. When he was in jail in Virginia, he met an Islamic extremist and underwent an “indoctrination” process.

In 2008 Mr Morton co-founded “Revolution Muslim”. The next year, he praised an attack at Fort Hood, Texas, which killed 13 people.

Mr Morton obtained a master’s degree in international affairs from Columbia University - while he was still an extremist.

After a trip to Morocco, where he met young, secular Muslims, his ideals started to change. He was then was arrested and extradited to the US for the South Park threats. He was sentenced to 11 years behind bars but served only three. He spent his time in the library, reading literature and philosophy to “reconnect” with western culture.

He thanked a female FBI agent in particular for treating him as a human and who encouraged him to open up.

Since his release in February 2015, Mr Morton has worked with the FBI on high-profile cases.

“I suffer from a tremendous amount of guilt,” he told CNN.

“I have seen things that people have done and to know that I once sympathised and supported that view - it sickens me.”

Several reformed terrorists have put their past behind them to educate people, including Maajid Nawaz, a former member of a radical Islamic group who now a prominent activist and author, and a strong critic of extremist Islam in the UK.