In an online posting Friday, ISIS claimed that American hostage Kayla Mueller died in the group’s de facto capital, Raqqa.
The posting Friday included a picture of a bombed-out building and a claim that hostage Kayla Mueller had been held there. However, the posting did not show a body or provide other proof of death.
Jordanian Government Spokesman Mohammad Al-Momani tells CNN that he thinks the terrorist group ISIS is lying about Mueller’s death.
CNN
Jordan has made a quick response to the apparent killing of pilot Moaz al-Kasasbeh, hanging two al Qaeda prisoners. Demonstrations have also sparked in Jordan as a result of the pilot’s death.
Swedish police started a manhunt recently after the third arson attack against a mosque in a week.
Secular Talk video.
http://news.yahoo.com/sweden-hit-third-mosque-arson-attack-week-145914459.html
Groups of right-wing Ukrainian nationalists have been committing executions in the rebel-held territories of Eastern Ukraine, according to a report from Amnesty International. Evidence emerged last September in the local media of volunteer militias beheading their victims.
According to Newsweek, armed volunteers who refer to themselves as the Aidar battalion “have been involved in widespread abuses, including abductions, unlawful detention, ill-treatment, theft, extortion, and possible executions”, Amnesty said.
The organization has also published a report detailing similar alleged atrocities committed by pro-Russian militants, highlighting the brutality of the conflict which has claimed over 3,000 lives.
Amnesty’s statement came before images of what appeared to be the severed heads of two civilians’ started circulating on social media, identified by Russian news channel NTV as the heads of rebel hostages.
Shortly after, Kiev-based news network Pravilnoe TV reported that it had spoken with one of the mothers of the victims who confirmed her son was a rebel, captured during fighting in Donetsk.
She said she had received her son’s head in a wooden box in the mail, blaming nationalist volunteers for her son’s death. Newsweek has not been able to verify the report independently.
There are over 30 pro-nationalist, volunteer battalions similar to Aidar, such as Ukraina, DND Metinvest and Kiev 1, all funded by private investors.
The Aidar battalion is publicly backed by Ukrainian oligarch Ihor Kolomoyskyi, who also funds the Azov, Donbas, Dnepr 1, Dnepr 2 volunteer battalions, operating under orders from Kiev. Last spring Kolomoyskyi offered a bounty of $10,000 of his own money for each captured Russian “saboteur.”
Russia is calling for an international investigation into the discovery of the burial sites of those allegedly executed.
The top authority at Russia’s presidential human rights council, Mikhail Fedotov, called on the authorities to do everything to “ensure an independent international probe” and “let international human rights activists and journalists” gain access to the site in Eastern Ukraine’s Donetsk region.
The burial sites are near the Kommunar mine, 60 kilometers from Donetsk, and were discovered by self-defense forces.
Four bodies have been exhumed, including those of three women. Their hands were tied, at least one of the bodies was decapitated, self-defense fighters said.
The four bodies were found in September. Self-defense forces believe there might be other burials in the area.
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According to McClatchyDC, the different nature of ISIS’ new video has caused some to think that Peter Kassig put up a fight prior to the beheading. In the newest ISIS video, Kassig does not speak to the camera at all: in fact, he’s already dead.
A former roommate of Kassig says the unusual nature of the video suggests the 26-year-old fought his execution.
Previous videos released by the Islamic State follow a grisly formula, with masked militants carrying out beheadings of hostages, including American journalists James Foley and Steven Sotloff and British aid workers David Haines and Alan Henning.
In the video released Sunday, a head believed to be Kassig’s is shown during a 15-minute video boasting of ISIS’ killings of Syrian soldiers. But Kassig’s body and videotaped killing are not in the video. Also not shown are images of other hostages that the group typically sets up as their next victims.
“Peter, who fought against the Muslims in Iraq while serving as a soldier under the American army, doesn’t have much to say,” the masked militant who seems to be “Jihadi John” from the other videos.
“Clearly something went wrong,” Mitchell Prothero, Iraq correspondent for McClatchy, who shared an apartment with Kassig in Beirut. “My belief is that he knew it was up and did something to screw up their video.”
Kassig, an Indianapolis native, was kidnapped while delivering relief supplies to refugees in Syria in 2013.
“There’s no way they planned for 14 minutes of them killing Syrian guys and then 30 seconds at the end of them killing Pete,” Prothero said.
For anyone who saw this video and has seen the previous videos, it makes sense. In the others, the prisoner talked to the camera prior to the beheading.
The ISIS videos of Kassig and of the Syrian fighters can be seen at this website:
The website is called LeakSource. The viewer must enter a birth date to watch.
Warning: The videos are graphic and not for children.
http://news.yahoo.com/peter-kassig-friends-isis-video-135902361.html;_ylt=A0LEV1eiSGpUWuwAmyVXNyoA
http://www.mcclatchydc.com/2014/11/16/247033_islamic-state-video-claims-beheading.html?rh=1
Many news sources do not call him “Christian.” Most sites do call him a “zealot.”
Isaiah Marin, 21, is charged with first-degree murder in Oklahoma in the attack that killed 19-year-old Jacob Crockett. Crockett’s brother, Jesse, described Marin as a “religious zealot” and “heavy drug user,” according to a court affidavit.
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On a rural road in Canyon County, Idaho, you can find a scary yard decked out for Halloween.
In the yard you can also see the President’s head on a stick as part of the Halloween decorations.
Richard Piersol said he enjoys decorating for Halloween and this year he wanted his political views known.
“I’ve got the Grim Reaper on the ATV, and Obama’s head is on the spear and he has been decapitated.
“It’s like free speech. I am pretty much saying I don’t like his politics, and I don’t like him. That’s it,” Piersol told CBS affiliate KBOI2.
The Canyon County Sheriff’s department said Piersol is not breaking any laws with the display, and some officers have shown him their support.
“I’ve had three police officers stop and take pictures and give me the thumbs up,” Piersol said.
CBS reports Piersol’s display was inspired by his opposition to President Obama.
In terms of racial prejudice, Piersol says his decorations have nothing to do with race.
“I’ve got a couple of African American friends of mine that have given me more ideas to put out there to make it look gorier. And it’s like ‘no, I don’t want to do that. That might offend somebody,'” Piersol said.
Eric Gonzales, who works for CBS Affiliate KBOI2 in Idaho, claims he called the Secret Service and asked what they think of it, and they told him that “they will look into it.”
Piersol’s neighbors have not complained about him featuring President Obama’s head on a stick in the display, but one parent did have to answer a question raised by his son.
“My son asked me if it was a little bit prejudice towards certain individuals, say maybe the president because it has a head over there with a machete, I said no I don’t think it’s directed towards anybody,” explained local resident Wally Lester. “ think it just happens to be that situation the way they put it together.”
ISIS’ newest threat is to Abdul-Rahman (formerly Peter) Kassig, 26, who is an Indiana native and a veteran of the U.S. Army. He served in the Iraq war.
He later became an emergency medical technician and traveled to Lebanon in May 2012 to work as a volunteer medical assistant in border hospitals treating Palestinian refugees and later those fleeing the growing Syrian conflict, as well.
A short video released by ISIS on Friday shows the apparent beheading of a British aid worker named Alan Henning. At the end of the video, ISIS shows Peter Kassig, and threatens his life.
Later that fall, Kassig founded SERA (Special Emergency Response and Assistance), a non-governmental organization. In the summer of 2013 he moved its base of operations to Gaziantep, Turkey.
SERA was dedicated to providing first-response humanitarian aid for refugees fleeing the widening civil war in Syria. Kassig sourced and delivered food and medical supplies to the growing camps on both sides of the Syrian border. He also provided primary trauma care and trauma care training to civilian casualties inside Syria.
He was undertaking a project for SERA when he was detained on October 1, 2013, on his way to Deir Ezzour in eastern Syria.
He has since converted to Islam while being held hostage.
Previously, ISIS murdered two American citizens that they had imprisoned – James Foley and Steven Sotloff. They have also killed a UK citizen – David Haines and now it seems Alan Henning.
During the Syrian conflict, more than 30 western hostages have been detained.
For the past year, the Kassig family has maintained silence at the wish of those who have held their son. His family, along with friends and colleagues inside and outside Syria, have worked tirelessly, and quietly, to secure his release.
Indiana Governor Mike Pence issued the following statement: “Our prayers are with Peter Kassig and his family during this unspeakably difficult time. I urge all Hoosiers to keep this compassionate young man and those who know and love him in their thoughts and prayers.”
Senator Joe Donnelly (D-IN) released the following statement: “This is an unimaginably devastating situation for any parent to endure. My prayers are with Peter’s parents at this terrible time…I ask for respect of the Kassig family’s privacy as they seek to navigate this heartbreaking situation… “
Conservative radio host Bryan Fischer blames the recent Oklahoma beheading on drugs (or drug policy). Secular Talk comments.
“So any attempt by YOU, OBAMA, to deny the Muslims their rights of living in safety under the Islamic caliphate…!”
Sources state that the ISIS killer “Jihadi John” may have been on drugs when he appeared in the video depicting the execution of British aide worker David Haines. Experts who have closely analyzed audio of his speech now believe this to be the case.
The masked, black-clad ISIS terrorist appears in all three videos that show the beheadings of Western hostages. Since the videos fade out before the actual killings, then fade back in to show the aftermaths of the murders, investigators are not sure whether “Jihadi John” was the actual killer or simply a spokesperson.
The previous two videos show the beheadings of U.S. journalists James Foley and Steven Sotloff. But in the most recent video, showing the murder of David Haines, the audio experts say that there’s something different about the way the ISIS killer speaks.
In the latest video, Jihadi John appears to be slurring his words, and speaking in a more pressured, higher-pitched tone than in the earlier beheading videos. While the change in tone could indicate that the ISIS terrorist is under additional stress himself, it more likely means that he is under the influence of the drug “khat.”
Khat is a naturally growing, leafy plant that grows in parts of Africa and the Arabian peninsula. Chewing the leaf releases the substance cathinone, which is similar to amphetamines and is banned in many countries as a controlled substance.
Supposedly, British intelligence services have positively identified “Jihadi John,” and have told U.S. authorities who he is, sources say. The killer is not believed to be the former rapper Abdel-Majec Abdel Bary, who was earlier identified as the most likely suspect.
Inquisitr states Britain’s security service MI5 already had its eye on him before he left the U.K. for Syria to join ISIS, but at the time they considered him basically harmless. Experts say he also has an accent from the south-west of England.
British government authorities, however, told the Daily Telegraph that the public should not get its hopes up about ever seeing Jihadi John captured and brought to Britain or the United States to face a trial. However, killing Jihadi John with a drone airstrike or secret special forces mission remains possible.
OK, Fine. 