ISIS killer ‘Jihadi John’ identified as Mohammed Emwazi

Notorious Islamic State (IS/ISIS) killer, earlier dubbed by the media as Jihadi John, has been identified as Kuwaiti-Born Londoner, Mohammed Emwazi.

According to CNN, The left-handed abductor, who appeared in most of ISIS beheading videos, was identified on Thursday by US officials.

Emwazi, a heavily-accented Briton, is believed to have travelled to Syria in 2012 and later joined ISIS there.

Despite the revelation, one cannot be 100% certain, a London-based human rights and Muslim advocacy organisation (CAGE) that has interacted with him said.

CAGE added that if it was truly Emwazi, then it’s a sign that British authorities’ tactics pushed him to radicalise.

Though British officials have declined confirmation of his identity, some terrorism experts say Emwazi’s history shows someone who had been on a path towards extremism for years.

Born in Kuwait in 1988, Emwazi moved to the United Kingdom when he was six years old, before going on to study computer programming at University of Westminster in London.

According to the CAGE website, Emwazi “hoped that with this degree, he could build a successful career in Arab countries, as he was fluent in Arabic, English and had a British accent”.

He was said to have started his journey to radicalisation after he was detained and deported from Tanzania in 2009.

In Tanzania, he was said to have been arrested and detained for no particular reason. When he questioned one of the persons involved, he was told it could be the British government’s dealing.

“He then showed a paper with his name, flight details and at the bottom, a piece of writing which said ‘refuse entry and send back to the UK with the same flight,’” CAGE reported.

“You know it could be the British, your government, who were the reason for your rejection,” the Tanzanian official added.

Sajjan Gohel, director of international security at the Asia Pacific Foundation, said Emwazi’s history shows why ISIS would want him.

“We know that ISIS recruits a lot of westerners who are skilled in new media, understanding of the Internet, because they use that as their platform as an oxygen of publicity,” he said.