Siddhartha Dhar: man identified in IS video 'skipped UK bail'

The hooded man who appeared in Islamic State's latest propaganda video is believed to be Siddhartha Dhar, a British Muslim convert who was once arrested for terrorist offences.

"Mr Dhar is the focus of investigations into the video, which purports to show the killing of five men IS says were spies," reports the BBC, citing an "official source".

Dhar, a father of four from east London, was held on suspicion of encouraging terrorism in September 2014, but was released on bail. He then fled to Syria.

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Relatives "admitted that the killer seen shooting a prisoner in the head in the latest Islamic State video could be the 32-year-old former bouncy castle salesman," the Daily Telegraph reports. His mother and sister said they "noticed similarities between the voice of the masked Jihadi and Dhar".

Born into a Hindu family, Dhar converted to Islam as an adult and quickly began expressing radical views, including support for the outlawed extremist group Al-Muhajiroun. Dhar, who once told a BBC interviewer about his wish to join Islamic State militants, is now living in Syria with his wife and four children under the name Abu Rumaysah.

A young British boy who also appeared in the IS video has been identified as Isa Dare by his grandfather. Sunday Dare, a 59-year-old taxi driver, said that he recognised the child as the son of his daughter Grace, who now goes by the name Khadijah. Once a devout Christian, she is now one of Islamic State's most infamous online propagandists, filling social media accounts with rapturous accounts of life in IS territory. She has previously posted a picture on social media of Isa brandishing an assault rifle, and once vowed to be the first woman to behead an IS hostage.

"He is my grandson," Dare told Channel 4 News. "He doesn’t know anything, he is just a small boy. They are just using him as a shield. It's propaganda."

He appealed to Grace, who converted to Islam in her teens, to bring Isa and her other child home from Syria.

"Grace, Grace, come home with my grandchildren," he told the Telegraph. "Come home, we love you. Come and face the music."