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Security services close to identifying jihadi killer of James Foley Security services close to identifying jihadi killer of James Foley
(35 minutes later)
Security services are close to identifying the jihadi captor who beheaded American journalist James Foley, the British ambassador to the United States has said.Security services are close to identifying the jihadi captor who beheaded American journalist James Foley, the British ambassador to the United States has said.
Speaking on US television, Sir Peter Westmacott, said voice recognition technology had been used to pin down the identity of the man, believed to be a British born militant from London who calls himself John.Speaking on US television, Sir Peter Westmacott, said voice recognition technology had been used to pin down the identity of the man, believed to be a British born militant from London who calls himself John.
"We are not far away from that [identifying the man who beheaded James Foley]," he said. "[W]e are putting a lot into it, using voice recognition technology to try to identify him. I cannot say more than this but I know that we are close.""We are not far away from that [identifying the man who beheaded James Foley]," he said. "[W]e are putting a lot into it, using voice recognition technology to try to identify him. I cannot say more than this but I know that we are close."
But he warned that the fighter was just one of many militants – hundreds of them from the UK – prepared to murder and die for the self-proclaimed Islamic State, formally known as Isis. "This problem goes beyond one horrific criminal. As many as 500 British subjects have gone to Syria or Iraq to take part in jihad. There are more going from other European countries, too, and this is a betrayal of all our values," he said during an interview with CNN.But he warned that the fighter was just one of many militants – hundreds of them from the UK – prepared to murder and die for the self-proclaimed Islamic State, formally known as Isis. "This problem goes beyond one horrific criminal. As many as 500 British subjects have gone to Syria or Iraq to take part in jihad. There are more going from other European countries, too, and this is a betrayal of all our values," he said during an interview with CNN.
He added: "All western countries have a very small number who have become radicalised or brainwashed enough to take up this cause. But this is not the majority and the Muslim Council of Britain has come out formally against this."He added: "All western countries have a very small number who have become radicalised or brainwashed enough to take up this cause. But this is not the majority and the Muslim Council of Britain has come out formally against this."
The Sunday Times, citing unnamed senior government sources, reported that intelligence services MI5 and MI6 have identified the fighter suspected of killing Foley but the sources did not give details about the suspect's name. The masked militant, who was shown on video beheading Foley, threatened to kill a second US hostage if President Barack Obama did not change foreign policy in Iraq. MI5 and counter-terrorist police engaged in the manhunt have stressed the sensitivity of a covert operation that has been going on for a year but has intensified and become more urgent with the video of Foley's death revealed by Islamic State last week.
They are being helped by GCHQ and voice recognition technology in combing databases from surveillance and communications intercepts and analysing intelligence gleaned from open sources such as social media.
The covert nature of the investigation, in particular intelligence from informants or friends, helps to account for the reluctance to name suspects.
It also seems clear that many of the estimated 500 Britons who have travelled to Syria to join Islamist groups, and even the 200 who are believed to have returned, are not known to the security and intelligence agencies. The main priority now is to identify them.
Intelligence sources said Islamic State does present a potential threat to Britain and the west, pointing to recent attacks in Belgium and France. Philip Hammond, the foreign secretary, told the Sunday Times, that "sooner or later [the terrorists] will seek to strike us on British soil".
Former MI6 officers have played down the risk, saying Isis is interested in gaining power across the Middle East but, unlike al-Qaida, not in terrorising western nations.
Asked why Britain would not commit to air strikes if Islamic State were also a threat to the UK, Westmacott said the UK was "very active" in the region. "It is a threat to us. We've picked up 60 or 70 of our subjects coming back from Iraq and Syria intending to do damage to our country," he said. "We are very active, very present, we have a lot of humanitarian involvement and we have been shipping arms to the Kurdish government, refuelling aircraft."Asked why Britain would not commit to air strikes if Islamic State were also a threat to the UK, Westmacott said the UK was "very active" in the region. "It is a threat to us. We've picked up 60 or 70 of our subjects coming back from Iraq and Syria intending to do damage to our country," he said. "We are very active, very present, we have a lot of humanitarian involvement and we have been shipping arms to the Kurdish government, refuelling aircraft."
Westmacott repeated assurances made by other key members of the government, including the foreign secretary, Philip Hammond, that Britain would not put "boots on the ground" in Iraq. "At the moment the Iraqi government are not asking us to do more than we are doing," he said. "It's right to say that we are present alongside the US in an active role … but we are not getting involved in another Iraq war … We are not planning direct action at this point. We are not putting British boots on the ground." Westmacott repeated assurances made by other key members of the government, including Hammond, that Britain would not put "boots on the ground" in Iraq. "At the moment the Iraqi government are not asking us to do more than we are doing," he said. "It's right to say that we are present alongside the US in an active role … but we are not getting involved in another Iraq war … We are not planning direct action at this point."
In an article in the Sunday Times Hammond called Foley's killing an "utter betrayal of our country". He wrote: "It is horrifying to think that the perpetrator of this heinous act could have been brought up in Britain." He issued a stark warning that if Islamic State were not stopped they would commit an act of terror in the UK. "Isil [Islamic State] members are turning a swath of Iraq and Syria into a terrorist state as a base for launching attacks on the west … Unless they are stopped, sooner or later they will seek to strike us on British soil," he said. In the Sunday Times article Hammond called Foley's killing an "utter betrayal of our country". He wrote: "It is horrifying to think that the perpetrator of this heinous act could have been brought up in Britain."
He issued a stark warning that if Islamic State were not stopped they would commit an act of terror in the UK. "Isil [Islamic State] members are turning a swath of Iraq and Syria into a terrorist state as a base for launching attacks on the west," he said.