Was-Jordanian-pilot-burned-alive-sick-Twitter-campaign-ISIS-supporters-method-death.html

ISIS supporters launched sickening Twitter campaign after pilot's capture
Called for brutal execution suggestions, prompting thousands of ideas
Methods suggested included burning alive and being run over with a bulldozer - the techniques that featured in the gruesome murder video
Thousands of other ideas were also shared by depraved supporters online
Kasasbeh's 22-minute murder video emerged yesterday, showing his gruesome death in a bomb hit courtyard in ISIS stronghold Raqqa
Burning and crushing ritual supposed to symbolise being killed in airstrike

By Duncan Gardham and John Hall for MailOnline

Published: 10:56 GMT, 4 February 2015 | Updated: 12:19 GMT, 4 February 2015

Thousands of ISIS supporters took to Twitter in the days after Jordanian pilot Moaz al-Kasasbeh was captured to suggest sick methods of execution - including the two techniques that ultimately resulted in his death, it emerged today.

Kasasbeh was seen being burnt alive before being run over by a bulldozer in a 22-minute-long video released by the terror group yesterday, in which the level of barbarism and brutality sunk to new lows, even by ISIS' depraved standards.

The method of murder raises the chilling prospect that ISIS may have been influenced by the Twitter campaign, which used the Arabic hashtag #SuggestAWayToKillTheJordanianPilotPig to elicit ideas from the terror group's supporters.

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Brutal: The sickening decision to burn Jordanian pilot Moaz al-Kasasbeh alive may have come from Twitter after ISIS supporters launched a hashtag calling for execution ideas in the days after his capture

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Captured: Kasasbeh was caught by ISIS militants on December 24 when his F-16 fighter jet suffered mechanical problems and crash-landed close to ISIS' Syrian stronghold and de facto capital Raqqa

Horror: A Twitter user calling himself Black Flag suggested using wild animals to execute Kasasbeh before suggesting death by chainsaw or melting with acid as possible alternatives.

No escape: The idea to place the pilot in a cage may have come from a Twitter user calling himself Sham Islamic Echo, who tweeted: '[I] suggest bringing a hungry crocodile and put it in a cage with the pilot'

In the days after Kasasbeh's capture - which occurred on December 24 when his F-16 fighter jet suffered mechanical problems and crash-landed close to ISIS' Syrian stronghold and de facto capital Raqqa - militants used Twitter to crowd source ideas for his execution.

A film clip featuring a woman who claimed to be the mother of a Syrian man killed in a coalition airstrike suggested 'impalement, not with a mercy shooting or a mercy knife.'

Another horrific idea from a Twitter user calling himself Abu Ishaq Sophistication was to either place Kasasbeh in a tank and set it alight, or to use acupuncture needles dipped in acid to disfigure him, before cutting of his head and sending it head back to Jordan.

A second hashtag labelled #WeAllWantToSlaughterMoaz and carrying more brutal execution ideas and videos of children killed in coalition airstrikes, was retweeted over 11,000 times.

It is not known whether any of those taking part in the campaign - including the organisers of the hashtag - have any sway with the ISIS leadership and whether any of the ideas influenced the eventual decision to murder Kasasbeh by burning him alive.

But what the horrific suggestions do show is the outrageous levels of barbarism and hatred among ISIS' supporters, many of whom live in the West, far from the terror group's self-declared caliphate.

It is also important to note that following the gruesome video's release ISIS supporters attempted to justify death by burning and bulldozer as a similar fate met by those killed in an airstrike - suggesting bombing victims are often burnt and crushed to death in their homes.

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Barbaric: An ISIS extremist lights a trail of petrol leading to the cage in which the 26-year-old stands

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Depraved: The flames reach the cage holding the helpless pilot. It is later flattened by a bulldozer

The sickening Twitter campaigns appear to have been a reaction to the hashtag #WeAreAllMoaz where individuals praised the pilot and offered prayers and support for his family after his capture.

That original hashtag was retweeted more than 200,000 times and was supported by Queen Rania and Crown Prince Hussein of Jordan.

The early nature of the campaign suggests reports that ISIS executed Kasasbeh at the beginning of January may well be accurate.

Experts add that the slick, professionally shot 22-minute video would have taken some time to edit.

The footage of Kasasbeh's eventual murder was laced with highly symbolic imagery, not least the fact he appears to have been killed in a rubble-strewn courtyard damaged by coalition war planes.

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Shocking: A film clip featuring a woman who claimed to be the mother of a Syrian man killed in a coalition airstrike suggested Kasasbeh be killed by 'impalement, not with a mercy shooting or a mercy knife'

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Professional: Experts believe that the slick, professionally shot 22-minute video of Kasasbeh's murder would have taken some time to edit, suggesting he is likely to have been killed in early January

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Jordanian officials have told the devastated family of the 26-year-old (pictured) that they believed the footage to be genuine and that the man branded a ‘hero’ in his homeland was dead

Even by the Islamic State's barbaric standards, the terror group's latest execution video reached a truly depraved new low.

The footage shows the Jordanian pilot being burnt alive in scenes that are far too shocking to even consider publishing.

As with previous beheading videos featuring British executioner Jihadi John, the 22-minute-long clip is characterised by its slick production values and graphics.

But unlike the others, it contains an added cinematic dimension designed to achieve unparalleled impact on the viewer - as if the horror of watching someone torched to death wasn't enough.

ISIS blames the F-16 fighter pilot for burning houses - and killing babies - with airstrikes before he was captured in December.