Hence, the parents of Abdul Wakil sent their son to a madrasa in Pakistan. But a mere two months home, he quit and returned home.

“In the madrasas we were taught to sacrifice ourselves for Jihad in Afghanistan and were told to do suicide attacks,” said 14 year old Wakil. “I don’t want to be a suicide attacker, because it’s forbidden in Islam, so I secretly quit the madrasa and returned home.”

His parents are concerned for his safety. “If the Taliban find out about him, they will kill him,” said Wakil’s father. “We are also concerned about his education and his future.”

Madrasas typically provide classes about Islam, free education, shelter and food. Madrasas are funded by private donors.

“Pakistani madrasas brainwash students and teach them religious extremism, armed Jihad and hatred against the government in Afghanistan and the West,” said Gulab Mangal, the Helmand province’s governor.

Madrasas are believed to be a recruiting ground for militant organizations. In fact, the Taliban has been strongly linked to them.

But supporters of madrasas claim that the religious schools are necessary in countries where of Muslims live in poverty and state educational infrastructure is poor.

Today, Pakistan alone is home to over 13,000 madrasas. The rise in the number of madrasas increased in the 1980s when they became recruiting grounds for Islamic volunteers fighting Soviet forces in Afghanistan. Some madrasas later supplied recruits for the Taliban regime.

President Pervez Musharraf attempted to reform madrasas, but failed due to strong support of the education. The International Crisis Group claims that madrasas have survived attacks from the government because of the government’s reliance on religious parties.

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