Recycle

Abu Amar, a Jordanian ex-Mujahid and father of eight children, used to run a supermarket that he named “Al Jihad”. Now he gathers cardboard on the streets of Zarqa, Jordan’s second largest city, in order to scrape together a living for his family. As his situation deteriorates Abu has to make a radical decision. This is a revealing and beautifully shot portrait of a desperate man, whose religious beliefs are put to the test in the face of humiliating poverty. Director Mahmoud Al-Massad illustrates the tensions that exist in the city in which he himself grew up and which was also the place of birth of the notorious Al-Qaeda leader Abu Musab az-Zarqawi. Through the lives of Abu Amar, his family and neighbours, we are taken to the roots of Muslim fundamentalism, with its seemingly endless cycle of poverty and degradation that seems to produce an ever replenishing source of men who are prepared to take part in Jihad. (DOK.fest München)