Sharky Jama, an Australian ex-model and DJ, has reportedly been killed fighting alongside ISIS in Syria, his family learned Monday.
Although his death has not been confirmed through official sources, Jama’s parents said they received a text message and phone call informing them of their
son’s death by gunfire, CNN reported.
Jama, 25, disappeared in August 2014 after reportedly leaving his native Australia to fight with ISIS. His parents had contact with him after he left, CNN said, and he was reportedly living in Falluja, Iraq.
“They’re very shocked and disappointed,” Hussein Harakow, president of the Somali Australian Council of Victoria, told CNN regarding the family. “He never explained what’s happening over there or what he’s doing. The family lived a simple life. They never discussed these sorts of things.”
SBS Radio reported that Jama’s father, Dida Jama, did not believe the news of his son's death until he tried to call his cell phone and was directed straight to voicemail.
News of Jama’s death came at nearly the same time as the Australian government's release of a report indicating the large numbers of Australians fighting for ISIS. The problematic relationship the government has with Australia’s Muslim community represents a “serious national security threat," SBS noted.
Australia’s Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade told CNN that Jama’s death could not be confirmed because of the dangerous security situation in Syria.
"I have a very simple message for those who might be thinking of going overseas to join these terrorist groups: Don't. They are death cults . . . They are not about religion, they are just about death, and it's just as likely to be your death as anyone else's death," Australian Prime Minister
Tony Abbott said in a statement Thursday, according to The Daily Beast.
Stephen Bucknall, of Melbourne's FRM Model Management, which worked with Jama, told CNN that the model was “a very likeable guy, very courteous, always came around with a smile. He had a great modeling career ahead of him.”
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