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From Washington, this is VOA news. I'm Ray Kouguell reporting. A name attached to prominent Islamic State terrorist.
Media reports say the masked Islamic State militant who appeared in several videos of hostage beheadings has been tentatively identified. Reports quote friends of Mohammed Emwazi as saying they believe he is the tall, London-accented speaker, dubbed "Jihadi John." Asim Qureshi works with Muslims in conflict with British intelligence services. He is not sure Emwazi is Jihadi John, but he knows him. "You might be surprised to know that the Mohammed that I knew was extremely kind, extremely gentle, extremely soft spoken, was the most humble young person that I knew." Emwazi is reported to be a Kuwaiti-born middle class Londoner who practiced Islam. An activist group says the number of Assyrian Christians kidnapped by Islamic State militants in northeastern Syria is now up to at least 220. The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights says the fighters captured people during the past three days as they took control of ten villages in Hassakeh province. Ukrainian troops have started to withdraw artillery from a frontline eastern village near the devastated town of Debaltseve under the watchful eye of European monitors. They are overseeing a cease-fire deal reached earlier this month. Military officials on Thursday showed reporters from the Reuters news agency trucks towing 100-millimeter guns as Kyiv acknowledged a marked reduction in rebel attacks in the past three days. For a second straight day Thursday, Ukraine's military officials reported no combat fatalities in the regions near the Russian border, boosting prospects that an internationally-brokered truce reached more than two weeks will hold. This is VOA news. The Federal Communications Commission in the United States voted 3 to 2 Thursday in favor of "net neutrality" so wealthy Internet providers cannot have an advantage over smaller companies. The decision means the Internet in the United States is now treated like a public utility. Big name content providers, such as Amazon and Facebook, can no longer pay more money to broadband providers, such as Verizon and Comcast, to send material faster to customers than smaller content providers. The rules say all Internet traffic will now move at the same speed and no company can be blocked because it cannot afford to pay large amounts of money to Verizon or Comcast. Nigeria's upcoming national election is scheduled for March 28. A top State Department official says it'll be "a bellwether for the continent." Anita Powell reports. The vote was set for this month, but was moved back when the military said it would not be able to provide sufficient security amid fighting the extremist Boko Haram group, which has waged a war of terror in the nation's north. U.S. Assistant Secretary of State Linda Thomas-Greenfield told reporters this week she has been personally assured by top Nigerian officials that the vote will be held in late March. "We are all watching this election. This election will be a bellwether for the entire continent. The world is watching, the continent is watching, Nigeria's neighbors are watching this election." Assistant Secretary of State for Public Affairs Douglas Frantz noted with concern the Nigerian government has not granted visas to foreign journalists seeking to cover the poll. Anita Powell, VOA news, Johannesburg. Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan paid a surprise visit Thursday to the country's northeast, the epicenter of the Boko Haram insurgency. The president met with Nigerian troops in Baga and Mubi, two towns the army recently recaptured from the insurgents. But violence in the northeast continued Thursday. Witnesses said a suicide bomber killed at least 19 people in the Borno state town of Biu, a site of previous attacks claimed by Boko Haram. Witnesses in Somalia say one person was killed by at least five mortar rounds fired Thursday at the presidential palace in Mogadishu. Security officials confirmed the attack but did not release any information on casualties. Militant group al-Shabab claimed responsibility for the attack. A Saudi man accused of being an early leader of al-Qaeda was convicted on four counts of conspiracy in connection with the 1998 bombings of two U.S. embassies in east Africa. Fifty-two-year-old Kahlid al-Fawwaz was found guilty Thursday by a jury in New York. Al-Fawwaz was not accused of helping to plan the bombings. The August 1998 bombings of the U.S. embassies in Kenya and Tanzania killed 224 people. Al-Fawwaz faces a maximum sentence of life in prison. I'm Ray Kouguell in Washington. That's the latest world news from VOA. |