MOSCOW, August 20 (RIA Novosti) - UK Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond claims a video showing the beheading of an American journalist by an Islamic State (IS) militant with a British accent has heightened his awareness of IS recruits hailing from the United Kingdom, BBC news reported Wednesday.
"We're absolutely aware that there are significant numbers of British nationals involved in terrible crimes, probably in the commission of atrocities, making jihad with ISIL [also known as ISIS or the IS] and other extremist organizations," Hammond said.
The video, entitled A Message to America, features a man who appears to be James Foley, an American journalist missing since he was seized in Syria in 2012. The man believed to be Foley is brutally executed by a masked IS militant speaking with a British accent, claiming the beheading is in response to US airstrikes against the IS. “The life of this American citizen, Obama, depends on your next decision,” the militant said in English.
Hammond said that the involvement of British nationals with terrorists is a reason the IS "represents such a direct threat" to the United Kingdom’s security.
The BBC reports that IS has up to 400 recruits from the United Kingdom, while 69 people suspected of IS-involvement have so far been arrested in the country.
Although the IS video has not been verified officially, the foreign secretary believes it to be genuine. According to Global News, two US officials say they believe Foley was the victim in the video, while Foley’s family also confirmed his death in a statement posted on a webpage that was created to rally support for his release.
Social media image verification service Storyful also confirmed the executed man to be Foley, saying “the man resembles Foley precisely” and that it was posted with “the logo of al-Furqan productions, a media account associated with the Islamic State,” Global News reported.
The video has been removed from YouTube and other online sources.
