January 19, 2016

ISIS Confirms the Death of “Jihadi John”

A targeted drone strike in November took out the notorious ISIS executioner.

"Jihadi John" in Syria in January 2015, shortly before beheading two Japanese hostages.Rex Features/AP

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The death of the ISIS executioner known as “Jihadi John” was confirmed today by a eulogy in the most recent issue of the militant group’s magazine, Dabiq. In the just-released article, the so-called Islamic State confirmed that the militant was killed by a drone strike in the group’s de facto Syrian capital, Raqqa. Jihadi John has been identified as Mohammed Emwazi, a naturalized British citizen born in Kuwait in 1988. Emwazi gained global notoriety for his filmed executions of ISIS hostages, including the American prisoners James Foley and Peter Kassig. In mid-November, the United States announced that it was “reasonably certain” he had been killed in a targeted drone strike.

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