Notorious Islamic State murderer Jihadi John has vowed to "carry on cutting heads" and make a triumphant return to Britain soon together with the "Khalifa" (ISIS supreme leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi).
In a one-minute 17-second video obtained by the Mail on Sunday, Jihadi John, who has been identified as 27-year-old Londoner Mohammed Emwazi, appeared in a video footage unmasked for the first time. The Daily Mail said the video was apparently taken using a mobile phone about two months ago near the ISIS-held town of Deir Ezzor in southeast Syria. The British publication said the video was secretly obtained by rebel fighters of the Free Syrian Army.
Emwazi served as the executioner of at least seven hostages in Syria. The last time he wielded a knife and slashed the throat of a captive was in January when he beheaded Japanese hostage Kenji Goto.
Reports spread last month that Jihadi John was on the run in Syria and fled to Libya as fellow jihadists allegedly wanted to kill him. But the new video appeared to dismiss these speculations.
Jihadi John is considered one of the world's most wanted fugitive with a $9.4 million bounty placed on his head by US authorities. He first gained notoriety after he beheaded American captive James Foley, 40, in Syria last year. The next five months, he also beheaded American Steven Sotloff, 31; Briton David Haines, 44; Briton Alan Henning, 47; American Peter Kassig, 26; Japanese Haruna Yukawa, 42, and Goto, 47.
Jihadi John has taken part in the beheadings of at least 17 Syrian soldiers, which were also filmed.
British airstrike kills 40 ISIS fighters
Meanwhile the British Royal Air Force (RAF) announced that it has launched its most devastating attack against ISIS targets, killing at least 40 jihadis in a single airstrike.
The RAF statement said its Tornado jets destroyed an ISIS fortress near Mount Sinjar in Iraq, killing more ISIS militants than any previous British mission, The Mail on Sunday reported.
ISIS No.2 leader's death confirmed
In a related development, the White House confirmed last Friday that Hajji Mutazz, ISIS' second-in-command, was fatally hit in a drone strike on a car near Mosul last Tuesday, following a tip from a US intelligence source.
White House spokesman Ned Price said Mutazz, whose real name was Fadhil Ahmad al-Hayali, was travelling with an ISIS media operative, known as Abu Abdullah, when the air strike was launched.
Price said that Mutazz's death will have a big impact on the operations of the extremist organisation.
