An investigation into the alleged suicide of a Muslim Marine has determined that a culture of hazing of recruits has long existed at the service’s training center at Parris Island, South Carolina.
Pakistani-American Muslim Raheel Siddiqui died on March 18—just 11 days after reporting to boot camp from Taylor, Michigan—after falling 40 feet onto a barracks stairwell railing. According to the Wall Street Journal, Siddiqui was regularly abused both physically and verbally by a drill instructor, who would frequently refer to the 20-year-old recruit as a terrorist.
On the day of his death, Siddiqui was involved in a physical altercation with the drill instructor. According to Marine officials familiar with the investigation, Siddiqui asked the instructor for medical attention for a sore throat, but was refused. Instead, the drill instructor forced Siddiqui to run from one end of the barracks floor to the other several times.
