Jihadist who left Britain to join ISIS in Syria was responsible for the slick footage showing Jordanian airman being burned alive in a cage, says prominent Islamist
- Fabio Pocas, 22, moved to London with dreams of becoming a footballer
- But he abandoned the sport and converted to radical Islam instead
- Joined ISIS in Syria along with four other Portuguese Muslim converts
- Has now been identified as the militant who filmed Jordanian pilot's murder
- Muath al-Kasasbeh was burned alive while locked in a cage in February
A
Portuguese national who moved to London with dreams of becoming a
professional footballer has been identified as the depraved ISIS
militant who filmed the sickening murder of a Jordanian pilot.
A
prominent ISIS jihadi today claimed Fabio Pocas was the man behind the
slick and professionally edited footage of Muath al-Kasasbeh being
burned to death while locked in a cage in northern Syria.
The
chilling revelation suggests the Lisbon-born 22-year-old has
established himself as a prominent member of the terror group's
Al-Furqan media centre, which has been responsible for some of the most
barbaric propaganda videos ever released by ISIS extremists.
The
gruesome murder of Mr al-Kasasbeh is widely considered to be one of the
most horrific acts ever committed to film and employed expensive HD
cameras and Hollywood-style cinematic effects to capture the full
brutality of his shocking death.
Terrorist: Portuguese
national Fabio Pocas who moved to London with dreams of becoming a
professional footballer (left) later joined ISIS (right) and became
involved in their propaganda wing Al-Furqan Media
Depraved: The gruesome murder of Mr
al-Kasasbeh is widely considered to be one of the most horrific acts
ever committed to film and employed expensive HD cameras and
Hollywood-style cinematic effects
Pocas
was known to be one of five Portuguese men who embraced radical Islam
while living in east London and ended up joining militants fighting for
the Islamic State in Syria early last year.
Although
the men were a mix students and menial workers in the UK, they have
been on the radar of counter-terror experts ever since leaving the
country, thanks to a series of clues on social media that suggest the
cell holds inside information about the filmed murders of Western
hostages.
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However
today's message posted from an account known to be used by ISIS
supporters is the first time Pocas has been explicitly linked to the
actual filming of a terrorist execution video.
Calling
himself 'State Body Parts' and posting in Arabic, the ISIS supporter
wrote: 'Brother media 'Fabio Kabios' God save the photographer who
issued 'Healing the Believers Chests' to burn the forbidden pilot
Kasasbeh.'
Although
he spelled Pocas' surname wrong, the jihadi accompanied the post with a
photograph of the Portuguese militant posing with an AK47 assault
rifle, purportedly taken somewhere in ISIS-held territory in northern
Syria.
'Healing
the Believers Chests' was the title of the video showing Mr
al-Kasasbeh's murder, as well as the hashtag used by the terror group to
spread the sickening footage on social media.
Promising: Pocas (circled), pictured
with amateur side UK Football Finder, had received attention from an
agent who told him he could expect a trial at a professional club
Horror: The video, which is ISIS' most
sickening yet, begins by showing Kasasbeh being paraded in front of
heavily armed men wearing combat fatigues and yellow masks
Brutal: The footage, which is titled
'Healing the Believers Chests' appears to show the captured airman
wearing an orange jumpsuit as a trail of petrol leading up to the cage
is seen being set alight
Pocas
was one of five militants who moved from their native Portugal to
London, where they converted to Islam from Catholicism, adopted
extremist views and eventually travelled on to join ISIS in Syria.
Claim: Today's message - posted from
an account used by an ISIS supporter - is the first time Pocas has been
explicitly linked the terror group's videos
The
men, who lived in Leyton and Walthamstow, have long been on the radar
of intelligence officials - who believe the group plays a vital role in
the production and dissemination of the sick beheading videos featuring
Jihadi John.
At
22 Pocas is the youngest member of the group and moved to London from
Lisbon in 2012 with dreams of becoming a professional footballer.
He
had previously played at the youth academy of Sporting Lisbon - a club
which has bred a host of world stars including Luis Figo and Cristiano
Ronaldo.
After
arriving in London, Pocas began playing for an amateur league team
called UK Football Finder Football Club (UKFFFC), where he
flourished. After helping the side become champions of their division,
he was offered the prospect of a trial with a professional club.
It
was around this time that Pocas converted to Islam, however, with his
newly found faith taking his mind away from football and leading to his
failure to take advantage of the opportunity.
Weeks
later Pocas 'disappeared' from London, only to resurface later in ISIS
propaganda photos and to reveal on social media that he had changed his
name to Abdurahman Al Andalus and was now living in ISIS' Syrian
stronghold Manjib with his Dutch, teenage jihadi bride.
The 22-minute video showing the murder of Mr al-Kasasbeh was widely considered a new low, even by ISIS' barbaric standards.
As
with previous beheading videos featuring British executioner Jihadi
John, the clip was characterised by its slick production values and
graphics.
Barbaric: An ISIS extremist lights a trail of petrol leading to the cage in which the 26-year-old pilot stands
Captured: Muath al-Kasasbeh (centre in
white) was captured by the Islamic State after after crashing near its
HQ in the Syrian city of Raqqa in December. ISIS is now believed to
brutally murdered him
But
unlike the other videos, it contained an added cinematic dimension
designed for unparalleled impact on the viewer - as if the horror of
watching someone torched to death wasn't enough.
The
manner of his death is a symbolic show of strength to strike terror
into 'non-believers' and encourage recruits or doubters within their
ranks in equal measure.
Speaking
at the time, Dr Andreas Krieg, assistant professor for defence studies
at King's College London in Qatar, told MailOnline: 'This is a new
dimension of brutality, but ISIS had to evolve stylistically from
beheadings.
'The
global public got more or less used to it. ISIS shows innovation in
finding new means of psychological warfare or terrorism. The
helplessness of the victim, the viciousness and thought with which the
fire was arranged make the video unwatchable.
'It
is similar to the first time the world saw beheadings. It is
psychological shock and awe delivered through the power of imagery. It's
like a sickening game show. Everything is so pre-arranged and planned -
just the contestant has no chance to escape. It is a new level of
terror.'
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