Fresh French citizen in IS execution clip
Demonstrators call for the end to Islamic State of Iraq and Syria jihadists (Isis) on August 9, 2014. A German government minister said Monday Berlin aimed to set up a trauma centre for victims of a mass rape campaign by the Islamic State militant group. PHOTO | AFP
What you need to know:
- The video sparked global horror after its release Sunday by the IS Sunni Muslim extremist group that has carried out widespread atrocities since seizing control of large parts of Iraq and Syria.
- He is believed to have left for Syria in the autumn of 2013, and became known to investigators shortly afterwards during a probe into a network channelling jihadists into the war-torn country.
PARIS
A second Frenchman was identified Wednesday after appearing unmasked in a grisly execution video among Islamic State jihadists, many of whom are believed to be Western fighters.
Several European countries are probing the possible involvement of their nationals in the execution of 18 Syrian prisoners and kidnapped US aid worker Peter Kassig.
The video sparked global horror after its release Sunday by the IS Sunni Muslim extremist group that has carried out widespread atrocities since seizing control of large parts of Iraq and Syria.
One foreigner, 22-year-old Maxime Hauchard from Normandy in northern France, was quickly identified by French prosecutors.
VIOLENT BEHAVIOUR
He is one of several young French nationals from a middle class, atheist or Catholic background to have converted to radical Islam and gone to fight in Syria, making a profile of potential jihadists nearly impossible to pin down, experts say.
A source close to the French investigation on Wednesday identified a second national as 22-year-old Mickael Dos Santos from an eastern Paris suburb, who goes by the name of Abu Othman.
He is believed to have left for Syria in the autumn of 2013, and became known to investigators shortly afterwards during a probe into a network channelling jihadists into the war-torn country.
“The man concerned is known for his terrorist involvement in Syria and his violent behaviour shown on social networks,” PM Manuel Valls said, without confirming his identity.
