Former ISIS fighter says Jihadi John is 'strange' and a 'cold loner'

A former ISIS fighter says that the man known as "Jihadi John" is a "cold loner" who was eager to appear in propaganda videos.

The defector, who calls himself Abu Ayman, told the BBC that he met Jihadi John, identified publicly last week as Mohammed Emwazi, in the northern Syrian town of Atmeh. "He didn't talk much," he said. "He wouldn't join us in prayer. He'd only pray with his friends.... The other British brothers prayed with us, but he was strange." Emwazi would refuse to say hello and turn his face away, Abu Ayman said, and wouldn't spend time with his fellow fighters from Britain.

Abu Ayman said Emwazi became Jihadi John because "ISIS have professional psychologists. They know who to choose from the fighters and how to make them famous. Still, there was nothing special about Jihadi John...anyone could have become like him." Abu Ayman said he left after being told to kill a woman and children, but many others are flooding into Syria after seeing the brutal videos of Emwazi released by ISIS. "He's a celebrity to attract our Muslim brothers in Europe," he said. Watch the BBC's recreation of the interview below. —Catherine Garcia

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE

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.

Sign up