Peter Kassig beheading: video hints at turning point for IS

More rudimentary filming suggests Islamic State is on the run: if anything, the movement is spreading

Columnist Robert Fox

The murder of Peter Kassig has been portrayed by Islamic State terrorists in the same manner as the killings of his fellow British and American prisoners earlier this summer – but there are differences. Those differences suggest that IS is reaching a critical turning point in how it operates regionally and globally.

The whole video production seems less professional and more hurried than before, according to US and French analysts who have examined the new footage.

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is a writer on Western defence issues and Italian current affairs. He has worked for the Corriere della Sera in Milan, covered the Falklands invasion for BBC Radio, and worked as defence correspondent for The Daily Telegraph. His books include The Inner Sea: the Mediterranean and its People.