The evolution of "Jihadi John"

Photograph source: Mirror UK

It wasn’t until early Spring of this year the heinous, ruthless British Arab assassin dubbed as “Jihadi John” was identified and revealed to the world. The presumed deceased Mohammed Emwazi, born Mohammed Jassim Abdulkarim Olayan al-Dhafiri, lived a very modest life in west London before becoming one of the most dangerous (and hated) men in the world. The 26-year old was an Islamic extremist suspected to be one of the top leaders in ISIS, who is seen in terrorist propaganda videos, callously beheading at least five captives, which were highly publicized over the past year.

Mohammed Emwazi

Mohammed Emwazi was born in Kuwait on August 17, 1988 to Iraqi parents, who were considered of Bedoon origin. In 1994, the government of Kuwait denied citizenship to his parents and they eventually moved to the United Kingdom and settled in west London. It is assumed that the family fled to the United Kingdom after Emwazi’s father was allegedly linked to Sadaam Hussein during the invasion of Iraq. Once the family was denied Kuwaiti citizenship, they were considered “classless” or not having nationality—Bedoon origin. David Collins of Mirror UK indicated that “there are estimated to be more than 100,000 Bedoon living in Kuwait, but they are considered illegal residents by the government…the term describes people who were denied citizenship after the Gulf State declared independence from Britain in 1961.” Known as a kind and gentle individual, Emwazi attended English primary school and when he graduated from high school, immediately attended the University of Westminster where he received a degree in Information Systems and Business Management. Instantaneously, Emwazi moved back to Kuwait and found work at an IT company, where he excelled and was praised for his performance. According to John Hall, Jennifer Newton and Richard Spillett of Daily Mail UK, Emwazi was “calm and decent and the best employee we ever had” as stated by his former employer were he worked as an IT salesman in Kuwait.

Growing Up

At the age of 10, Emwazi’s dream was to be a footballer. Stating in his yearbook at St. Mary Magdalene Church of England, “what I want to be when I grow up is a footballer and by the age of 30 [he] would be in a football team scoring a goal.” There was speculation that Emwazi was bullied in school and that he had social issues growing up as an adolescent. With an anti-social demeanor, he grew up isolating himself from others and only associated with friends and family. He wasn’t rude or confrontational, but he didn’t acknowledge others and kept to himself. Former teachers spoke on his behalf and expressed that they had no reason to believe Emwazi was a threat to others and had a rather sweet mannerism that was overshadowed by his eccentricity of not showing any emotion. His former teacher, Ms. Shuter, was interviewed and described the disbelief and udder shock that Mohammed’s “meek and mild” demeanor had changed to a violent and dangerous terrorist leader.

Evolving as a Radical

Before joining ISIS, Mohammed was linked to a Somalian extremist group, al Shabab, when he suddenly left Kuwait to head for London. There had been assumptions that he was heavily influenced in Islamic extremism when returning to London as he kept company with British fighters. Additionally, there was speculation that security rules were unperturbed, allowing Emwazi to be overlooked when fleeing from Kuwait to London—which ultimately put him in the hands of extremists.

Between 2010 and 2013, Emwazi struggled getting back to Kuwait, as he was flagged as a potential terrorist suspect. According to news reports and intelligence, there was no indication of when Emwazi deepened into extremism, but members in his circle ventured to believe he was radicalized when he planned a trip to Tanzania, but was detained before he made it to the capital was essentially deported back to London. He attempted to abscond to Amsterdam but was detained by a military intelligence officer, who accused him of fleeing to Somali, the home of al Shabab. Some believe this was the demised of the respectful and polite individual, but others believe his radical beliefs developed as early as his upbringing in secondary school and worsened by the time he attended college.

Executioner-in-Chief

From a quiet and discipline boy to a knife-swinging killer, Jihadi John became one of the world’s most daunting, Islamic extremists. Emwazi is believed to have beheaded seven hostages: American journalists James Foley and Steven Sotloff, British aid workers, David Haines and Alan Henning, and Japanese journalist, Kenji Goto, and Japanese consultant, Haruna Yukawa. Intelligence agencies also believe Mohammed killed at least 21 Syrian troops, filming their dead bodies for extremist propaganda. Emwazi became popular as he trumped all news stations in his all back, militant attire, only seeing his piercing eyes—and his strong British accent, in which he seemed confident, speaking vehemently in all videos with his sadistic, ideological statements before beheading.

Some believe Mohammed became popular, and as a result, recruited more ISIS followers because they admired his actions. Others believed he was being used by ISIS and that he was not really an important figure in the group. Alexandra Topping, Josh Halliday, and Nishaat Ismail of The Guardian, stated that a former ISIS fighter, Abu Ayman, worked alongside Emwazi and did not believe he was great as everyone claimed him to be. He stated:

“Some love him Some joined ISIS after watching and admiring him; they take him as an example. ISIS play him like a piano. He’s a celebrity to attract our Muslim brothers in Europe but some think he is showing; they think he’s being used by ISIS.”

Death

Mohammed’s radicalization had become more intense and brutal that the United States and its coalition forces knew he had to be stopped. After months of surveillance, watching his movement, the United States launched an airstrike, which is highly suspected to have killed Mohammed Emwazi as he exited a building and entered in a vehicle in Syria. Pentagon Press Secretary Peter Cook expressed:

“U.S. forces conducted an airstrike in Raqqa, Syria, on Nov. 12, 2015 targeting Mohammed Emwazi, also known as Jihadi John. Emwazi, a British citizen, participated in the videos showing the murders of U.S. journalists Steven Sotloff and James Foley, U.S. aid work Abdul-Rahman Kassig, British aid workers David Haines and Alan Henning, Japanese journalist Kenji Goto, and a number of other hostages.”

Mohammed Emwazi was a shy, sweet boy that suffered from social anxiety and isolation. He was teased by boys and girls about his small stature to his hygiene incompetency that made him shamefully introverted and a loner. He had many responsibilities as a child to care for his siblings and worked really hard as a student and a young professional. Wanting to be a footballer, his plans changed when he befriends those who would be come extremists and later ISIS fighters.

Even though isolation, anti-social sentiments, and bullying was a factor in Emwazi’s evolution from a model man to a brutal killer, it is evident that he was influenced by his small circle of friends and the terrorist associates he met with in London, Somalia, and Syria. I cannot help but think if he did not have such a “loner” type of childhood and had more support from his family, he life may have turned out differently. It was known that his father was also a bully and did not present much of a father figure role in his life that he allowed to flee from country to country without knowing his whereabouts. While my thoughts do not justify his actions, his lack of guidance and seclusion from others carried with him into adulthood, in which he was easily influenced with extremism and radicalism.

Asim Qureshi of Cage, a London company, summed up his feelings about Emwazi’s treatment growing up as well as his incidents with security teams which prevented him from traveling.

“When are going to finally learn that when we treat people if they’re outsiders they are going to feel like outsides and they will look for belonging elsewhere?”

Mohammed Emwazi looked for a sense of belonging with ISIS.