An American national who left the United States to join ISIS before being caught by Kurdish forces was charged with terrorism in a federal court on Thursday.

The man, identified as 26-year-old Mohamad Jamal Khweis, grew up in Virginia and appeared in court in Alexandria on Thursday to hear the charges filed against him in the presence of his family.

Like Us on Facebook

Khweis' family members said nothing about the charges against him but mentioned that they were happy to see him. The ISIS defector will remain in custody until the next hearing and is scheduled to attend two more hearings in the coming weeks.

Khweis was captured by Kurdish Peshmerga military forces in March after fleeing from an ISIS-controlled neighborhood.

The 26-year-old left Virginia in mid-December and traveled through England and Turkey to join the terrorist organization.

Khweis shared that he stayed in a safe house controlled by the IS in Raqqa, Syria and was one of many recruits who had to undergo an "intake process" to join the organization.

He reportedly told officials that he interacted with an ISIS group that accepted volunteers from foreign countries. The group then trained the recruits before sending them back home to carry out attacks.

Khweis then volunteered to be a suicide bomber after an ISIS operative asked him if he wanted to, believing it as a  test of his commitment to the cause.

According to the charging documents, Khweis was contacting "ISIS-affiliated social media accounts to gain information and discuss his desire to travel to Syria," and using social media platforms "to securely and privately communicate with ISIL."

Khweis said in a statement, "At the time I made the decision, I was not thinking straight. On the way there I regretted, and I wanted to go back home after things didn't work out and saw myself living in such an environment." He pointed out that the living conditions in Mosul were "very difficult" and was trying to make contact with Kurdish forces to rescue him when he was captured.

He added that the people controlling Mosul do not represent the Islamic religion and that he does not see them as good Muslims. 

TagsIslamic State, Syria, Mohamad Jamal Khweis, Virginia, Mohamad Khweis, Mohamad Khweis ISIS, ISIS, Islamic state of iraq and syria, Kurdish fighters, American, ISIL