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.
Continue reading for free
We hope you're enjoying The Week's refreshingly open-minded journalism.
Subscribed to The Week? Register your account with the same email as your subscription.