The identity of the Isis executioner behind the murders of journalists James Foley, Steven Sotloff and David Haines is now known by intelligence officials although it will not be publicly released as the military works to apprehend him.
Intelligence officials had already known the Islamic State militant to be a hostage negotiator for a group of British Isis fighters operating in Syria as well as a hostage guard in Raqqa, the self-proclaimed capital of the Islamic State.
One of his former hostages said John is "intelligent, educated and a devout believer in radical Islamic teachings."
The British Ambassador to the US, Peter Westmacott, said last month that the net was closing on Jihadi John and that intelligence forces were using state-of-the-art technology – including voice recognition software – to track him.
The executioner, who speaks with a southern English or London accent, only shows his eyes in the three videos although experts have been able to use clues like his handedness and the backdrop of the videos to help gain intelligence on him.
Yesterday, a video described as a ‘copycat’ of the Isis beheadings, in which French mountaineer Hervé Gourdel was murdered, was released by an Algerian militant group calling themselves ‘Caliphate Soldiers’, also based in Syria.
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