News outlets have been comparing a recent spectacle to the work of Jihadi John, even though nothing has been confirmed, after a new video was released of five alleged British spies being killed at the hands of a man speaking with a British accent, according to the Chicago Tribune.
The Washington Post had unmasked John as Mohammed Emwazi, and he was reportedly killed by a U.S. air strike in November. This new clip, originally released through the SITE Intelligence Group, features a new man relaying a horrifying message directed at the British Prime Minister, David Cameron.
Only an imbecile would dare to wage war against a land where the law of Allah reigns supreme,” the gun-wielding man said, referring to Cameron, according to the Associated Press. “The Islamic State, our country, is here to stay. And we will continue to wage jihad, break borders, and one day invade your land, where we will rule by the Shariah.” The man also referred to Cameron as a “slave of the White House” and a “mule of the Jews.
The killings came soon after the speech was done, the masked man shot all five men as they kneeled on the ground in orange jumpsuits. The video ended with a young boy around the age of six or seven who says, “We are going to kill the Kafir [non-believers] over there.”
During a full analysis of the video, the Guardian reported that some of the victims allegedly confessed to reporting on Islamic State activity prior to their execution. The video is being fully examined by British intelligence officials.
According to reports, “An unnamed “person familiar with the matter” told the Wall Street Journal that the terrorist group “is likely using this video to divert attention from the extremist group’s recent military failings in Iraq, where they have lost three cities in as many months,” as the paper put it.”
A former CIA agent and Director of special projects at the Soufan Group told Al Jazeera, “It will not change one thing about the reality on the ground in Iraq and Syria. The fact that they can’t protect themselves in their capital says a lot.”
