Islamic State ‘Beatle’ backs slavery, disagrees with traffic tickets
Captured jihadi El Shafee Elsheikh tells reporter ‘I would do it all again’

A British Islamic State fighter who was one of the so-called ‘Beatles’ has defended the terror group’s atrocities in a chilling interview.
El Shafee Elsheikh, 29, was “detached and hostile” during the interview, refusing to make eye contact and repeatedly declining to answer questions. He told Al Aan reporter Jenan Moussa that he had no regrets about his time in Syria.
Elsheikh is accused of participating in torture and murder as one of the so-called “Beatles”, four British IS fighters given their nickname by captives who heard their English accents.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
“The brutal group held more than 20 Western hostages – and beheaded seven American, British and Japanese journalists and aid workers and a group of Syrian soldiers,” says the Daily Mail. Their victims include British aid workers David Haines and Alan Hemming, and US journalist James Foley.
Gruesome videos purporting to show these atrocities were distributed online, adding to the group’s notoriety.
Elsheikh, who was born in Sudan but grew up in west London, denied that he had participated in torture or beheadings and said that he did not watch the videos.
However, he defended Islamic State’s use of Yazidi women as sex slaves, which he said was justified in Islamic scripture. “I do not denounce slavery,” he said.
Asked if he disagreed with any of the terror group’s actions, he said: “Traffic tickets and other such things that have no place in the law of Allah.”
Asked about their “Beatles” nickname, Elsheikh said he did not listen to music, which is considered “haram” (forbidden) by some conservative sects of Islam. However, he added: “'I don't think John Lennon would like it much.”
Off-camera, Moussa said, he bragged:“I would do it all over again.”
The journalist tweeted afterwards that she was “struck” by Elsheikh’s lack of remorse, as well as his hypocritical attitude towards the West.
Elsheikh and Kotey, who have been stripped of their British citizenship, are being held in Kobane, Syria by Syrian Democratic Forces while the UK government and international allies decide where they will face trial.
The group’s ringleader, Mohammed Emwazi - nicknamed Jihadi John - was killed in November 2015 by a US drone strike. The fourth member, “Paul” - real name Aine Lesley Davis - is serving a seven and a half year prison sentence in Turkey for terror offences.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
-
The rise and rise of VTubers
Under The Radar This anime-inspired internet subculture is going global
By Abby Wilson
-
Book reviews: 'The Thinking Machine: Jensen Huang, Nvidia, and the World’s Most Coveted Microchip' and 'Who Is Government? The Untold Story of Public Service'
Feature The tech titan behind Nvidia's success and the secret stories of government workers
By The Week US
-
Mario Vargas Llosa: The novelist who lectured Latin America
Feature The Peruvian novelist wove tales of political corruption and moral compromise
By The Week US
-
Why Russia removed the Taliban's terrorist designation
The Explainer Russia had designated the Taliban as a terrorist group over 20 years ago
By Justin Klawans, The Week US
-
Inside the Israel-Turkey geopolitical dance across Syria
THE EXPLAINER As Syria struggles in the wake of the Assad regime's collapse, its neighbors are carefully coordinating to avoid potential military confrontations
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US
-
'Like a sound from hell': Serbia and sonic weapons
The Explainer Half a million people sign petition alleging Serbian police used an illegal 'sound cannon' to disrupt anti-government protests
By Abby Wilson
-
The arrest of the Philippines' former president leaves the country's drug war in disarray
In the Spotlight Rodrigo Duterte was arrested by the ICC earlier this month
By Justin Klawans, The Week US
-
Ukrainian election: who could replace Zelenskyy?
The Explainer Donald Trump's 'dictator' jibe raises pressure on Ukraine to the polls while the country is under martial law
By Sorcha Bradley, The Week UK
-
Why Serbian protesters set off smoke bombs in parliament
THE EXPLAINER Ongoing anti-corruption protests erupted into full view this week as Serbian protesters threw the country's legislature into chaos
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US
-
Who is the Hat Man? 'Shadow people' and sleep paralysis
In Depth 'Sleep demons' have plagued our dreams throughout the centuries, but the explanation could be medical
By The Week Staff
-
Islamic State: the terror group's second act
Talking Point Isis has carried out almost 700 attacks in Syria over the past year, according to one estimate
By The Week UK