Islamic State confirms death of Jihadi John

Confirming the death of British jihadist “Jihadi John” on January 19, the Islamic State (IS) said he was killed in a drone strike in their Syrian stronghold of Raqa in November. This is another setback for the IS where a prominent member of the militant grouping has been killed. Jihadi John, born as Mohammed Emwazi, was known as the celebrity executioner of the terror group appearing masked in a string of videos showing the beheadings of Western hostages. The IS in its online magazine Dabiq said that Emwazi was killed on November 12 “as the car he was in was targeted in a strike by an unmanned drone in the city of Raqa, destroying the car and killing him instantly”. In November, the US military had said that it was almost certain that he had been killed in the strike. Jihadi John is also believed to have played a role in the beheadings of American journalist Steven Sotloff, British aid worker David Haines, British volunteer Alan Henning, U.S. aid worker Abdul-Rahman Kassig, and Japanese journalist Kenji Goto.