Advertisement

Brutal IS executioner is Norwegian: Dagbladet

The Local Norway
The Local Norway - [email protected]
Brutal IS executioner is Norwegian: Dagbladet
A lecture for new recruits is given on ISIS territory in Iraq. Photo:YouTube screen grab.

An Islamic State fighter who was filmed earlier this year decapitating a man in the Syrian city of Raqqa is Norwegian, Dagbladet newspaper has claimed.

Advertisement

The newspaper claims to know the real identity of the executioner, who goes by the name Abu Shahrazaad al-Narwegi, meaning ”from Norway” in Arabic, but does not reveal his real identity or place of origin.
 
Raqqa, the site of the execution, is the Islamic State headquarters, where the terror organisation is in complete control. The man who was executed is thought to be an ex-sharia judge who had attempted to flee Raqqa for Qatar.
 
An account holder on Youtube who calls himself ”al-norwegi”  is following several IS related channels and ”likes” a number of brutal propaganda videos depicting brutal scenes from the on-going war in Syria.
 
Per Christian Gundersen, head of the media group at The Norwegian Defence University College told the newspaper he was not surprised that a Norwegian is working as an IS executioner in Syria.
 
”It is been known for some time that many of those who take part in executions are foreign jihadists. We have seen ”Jihadi John” from the United Kingdom and also others who are not from Syria and Iraq,” He told Dagbladet. ”But this is the first time I have heard of a Norwegian taking part in something like this” 
 
In a recent interview with Swedish newspaper Expressen, Syrian president Bashar Al-Assad claimed that  “the most dangerous leaders of ISIS (Islamic State or IS) in our region are Scandinavian.” 
 
In December last year, the Norwegian Police Security Service (PST) claimed that more than 100 Norwegians had gone to Syria to fight with IS. Ten are presumed dead, while 20 have returned to Norway. 
 
The number of returnees is low, as many face difficulties leaving Syria and IS. 
 
“Some of those who go to support the fight against Bashar al-Assad may be disillusioned because they are fighting against other Muslims – not necessarily against Assad. They often face major challenges to get out of IS and go home again. There is low tolerance for 'deserters'”. Gundersen told Dagbladet

More

Join the conversation in our comments section below. Share your own views and experience and if you have a question or suggestion for our journalists then email us at [email protected].
Please keep comments civil, constructive and on topic – and make sure to read our terms of use before getting involved.

Please log in to leave a comment.

See Also