Japanese volunteer fought in Syria for a 'personal test'
Tokyo man who joined rebels had no religious or political motive - just a 'pent-up feeling'
A Japanese man who joined a rebel group in Syria last year said he wanted to test his limits by going into battle but "had no religious or political beliefs".
The story of Yoshifumi Uzawa, 26, a self-employed resident of Tokyo, echoes that of another 26-year-old, a university student, questioned by police on Monday on suspicion of planning to join the Islamic State militant group.
The Hokkaido University student said he had no "interest in Syria or Islam".
Instead he was unhappy with his life and having problems finding a job.
In contrast, Uzawa, who has returned to Japan, travelled to the war-torn region because he had had "a pent-up feeling" that he wanted to fight.
Becoming withdrawn as a boy after being bullied, Uzawa said he began to feel life was meaningless and that he "wanted to destroy everything on a battlefield". Syria was his destination because fierce fighting was taking place, Uzawa said, adding that, like the student, he did not have any interest in Islam.