Idealism drove teen who stole away to Iraq

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. — He was born into money and privilege, the son of immigrant parents who came to this country from Iraq looking for freedom and a better life.

They found it, amassing wealth that gave him a home overlooking the Atlantic Ocean, tuition to a prestigious prep school and a $50,000 Infiniti for his 16th birthday.

But Farris Hassan, a tall and lanky straight-A student who loves to debate world politics and shuns typical teenage hangouts, didn't want it.

He left his bedroom unadorned, kept his friends few and, two weeks ago, stunned those who knew him by walking away from his life here. The teen boarded a plane to the Middle East alone, knowing the journey he embarked on might result in his death. His ultimate destination: Baghdad. His plan: to stand with those struggling for democracy in Iraq.

Phoning in

Hassan's family talked to him by phone Saturday and said he seemed unaware of the international stir he had caused.

He told them he was in Kuwait City and was scheduled for a return flight Monday, said his sister, Shehnaz Hassan. Back in Florida, his anxious parents were hoping he could secure an earlier flight.

"He said he was OK. He asked me what was going on," Shehnaz Hassan told The Associated Press. "He saw my mom and brother on TV. He had no idea there was so much commotion going on."

As family and schoolmates awaited his safe return from Baghdad this week, they described a young man who feels guilty about the comfort he enjoys, who is brilliant but foolhardy, a boy brimming with idealism and the desire to make a difference.

A journey of discovery

According to his father, an anesthesiologist, the teen spent two weeks traveling from Kuwait City to Beirut to Baghdad. He interviewed soldiers and everyday citizens to understand their plight, before walking into a war-zone office of the Associated Press news agency, which called the U.S. Embassy, already on the lookout for him.

Officials took him into custody Wednesday and put him on a plane to begin the long trip home on Friday, the Associated Press reported. The State Department warns Americans against traveling to Iraq, although it is legal.

"He wouldn't take it from anyone else. He had to see for himself," said his mother, Shatha Atiya, a psychologist, who said she was furious and terrified when she first learned where her son was headed.

According to family and schoolmates, Hassan is an honors student at Pine Crest School, an expensive preparatory in Fort Lauderdale that is often a gateway to the Ivy Leagues. A junior standing 6-foot-2, he takes several Advanced Placement classes, is a member of the debate team and Renaissance Club, and is a vocal Republican.

"He was kind of unusual," said Chris Rudolf, 17, who eats lunch with Hassan. "He wasn't really popular, but everyone knew him. He was shy about most things until you started talking about something he was passionate about. He was very passionate about the war in Iraq."

Getting involved

After leaving for the Middle East, Hassan, who is Muslim, sent out an e-mail opposing terrorism, saying more people needed to get involved in the Iraqi struggle for democracy — people like him. He wrote:

"To love is a not a passive thing. ... When I love, I do something, I function, I give myself. When I do that, I am freed from guilt. Love and kindness are never wasted. They always make a difference. ... I want to experience during my Christmas the same hardships ordinary Iraqis experience everyday."

The boy's father says Pine Crest in no way encouraged his son to go to Iraq. He said he had planned to take his son there this summer as an extension of a school project, but that his son was too impatient and took off on his own.

Once the boy arrived in Kuwait City, he attempted to cross the border into Iraq by taxi, his father said. When Hassan found the border closed, he called his dad who, while furious, says he gave his son the option of coming home or staying with family friends in Beirut for a week until the border opened and private security could be arranged.