That day, classes had finished early and Asif, Imtiaz and Iqbal were sitting together in an empty coffee shop across the road from the German Bakery in Koregaon Park. ‘Isn’t it amazing how easily we Muslims bear the brunt of every single problem?’ Asif remarked to no one in particular as he tossed down the newspaper in his hand. ‘Why? What’s happened?’ Imtiaz looked at him curiously. ‘Some bloody fool calling the Palestinians terrorists just because they are fighting for a homeland.’ Break the ice by talking about Palestine, that’s what Asif had been told by Mujib. He was quoting from the jihadi recruitment manual. ‘Don’t scare away a potential recruit by talking about the concerns of Muslims right at the beginning; doing that will make it obvious you’re trying to recruit him. And don’t get into arguments about religion or even criticize him. As the conversation progresses, you can talk about the mujahideen and the jihad, but always in a general, casual way. Avoid mentioning any particular group since your potential recruit may be negatively affected by the calumny spread by the media about that particular group.’ While Asif was talking, Iqbal leaned forward and rapidly scanned the article Asif had been reading.
