ALEXANDRIA, United States: Former hostages taking the witness stand on the trial in their alleged Islamic State team captor have described their brutal remedy in chilling element. 8 former IS hostages have testified thus far on the trial of El Shafee Elsheikh, accused of being a member of the infamous kidnap-and-murder mobile referred to as the “Beatles.” However in a quirk of the case-none of the previous IS captives has been requested thus far to officially establish their alleged captor in courtroom. That’s since the 33-year-old Elsheikh and the opposite alleged “Beatles”-so-called as a result of their British accents-took pains to hide their identities.
The previous hostages stated they had been steadily blindfolded and their captors wore balaclavas all the time with just a slit for the eyes. “They all the time attempted to offer protection to themselves,” stated Edouard Elias, a French photographer held prisoner through IS from June 2013 to April 2014. “With different guards I may get some news, however no longer with them,” Elias stated. “I simply noticed that one had a darker pores and skin, that’s all.” The abductors additionally had a “rule” every time they entered the cells the place the prisoners had been held.
“We needed to kneel down with our face towards the wall and not glance them within the face,” stated Federico Motka, an Italian help employee who used to be held for 14 months, longer than another hostage. “We needed to duvet our face,” stated Frida Saide, a former Medical doctors With out Borders (MSF) employee who used to be held for 3 months. Nicolas Henin, a French journalist, informed the courtroom the hostage-takers it appears believed that “so long as they had been masked they had been safe from prosecution.” “This used to be possibly a silly concept,” Henin stated.
Use personal phrases in opposition to him
Regardless of the precautions taken, prosecutors are assured they may be able to end up to the jury past an inexpensive doubt that Elsheikh, a former British citizen, used to be some of the “Beatles.” Elsheikh and some other alleged “Beatle,” Alexanda Amon Kotey, had been captured in January 2018 through a Kurdish defense force in Syria whilst making an attempt to escape to Turkey.
They had been grew to become over to US forces in Iraq and flown to the USA to stand fees of hostage-taking, conspiracy to homicide US electorate and supporting a overseas 15 may organization. Elsheikh is charged with the murders of American freelance reporters James Foley and Steven Sotloff and help staff Kayla Mueller and Peter Kassig and suspected of the abduction of just about 20 different Westerners. Kotey pleaded in charge in September 2021 and is dealing with existence in jail.
Elsheikh, who pleaded no longer in charge, isn’t anticipated to testify at his trial however prosecutors had been the usage of his personal phrases in opposition to him. After his seize, Elsheikh gave interviews to a number of media retailers and prosecutors have performed excerpts from the ones interviews for the jury. Within the interviews, Elsheikh stated interacting with the hostages however claimed he did not more than ask them for information-email addresses, for example-so the abductors may open ransom negotiations with their households. Elsheikh additionally sought to deflect responsiblity on some other member of the “Beatles,” Mohamed Emwazi, the IS executioner referred to as “Jihadi John” who used to be killed through a US drone in Syria in November 2015.
‘Like a workforce’
The previous hostages inform a a ways other story-brutal beatings by the hands of all 3 “Beatles,” waterboarding, electrical shocks and different types of torture. “George used to be into boxing. John kicked so much. Ringo talked so much about how he appreciated wrestling, hanging other people in headlocks,” Motka stated. “It used to be like a workforce,” Elias stated. Saide, the ex-MSF employee, stated they had been “pleasant, comfy round every different.” “They appeared to be just right pals,” she stated. The previous hostages have testified that even though they might no longer see their faces they might simply acknowledge the “Beatles,” even from the person tactics they might knock on their mobile doorways.
But even so their unique British accents, the “Beatles” had been additionally higher provided than the opposite guards with dear pistols and walkie-talkies. In courtroom, Elsheikh resembles a school scholar dressed in trendy civilian garments and outsized glasses. An extended black beard protudes from underneath his black COVID masks. All through witness testimony, he seems to spend maximum of his time staring immediately forward of him. Elsheikh’s attorneys have seized at the query of identity in mounting his protection. In opening arguments, they stated he used to be an IS jihadist however insisted he used to be no longer some of the “Beatles” and it used to be a case of “improper identification.” – AFP