Jihadi John Was 'Radicalized' by Britain, Group Claims

An organization that helped the Washington Post identify Mohammed Emwazi as the Islamic State’s Jihadi John has said that the man was “radicalized” by Britain.

Asim Qureshi, research director of the CAGE organization, with whom Emwazi communicated for several years, said that it was important for British citizens to reflect on how and why someone who grew up in Britain would go on to seek “belonging” with a group such as the Islamic State.

Qureshi said Emwazi approached CAGE, an advocacy group that works with “communities affected by the War on Terror”, after he was “harassed” by authorities when he was going on a holiday to Tanzania. The encounter was reported by The Independent in 2010. In that report, Emwazi is identified as Muhammad ibn Muazzam.

In a statement released after Emwazi was named as Jihadi John on February 26, CAGE said: “Since 2001, the British authorities have systematically shifted the spotlight away from its [sic] foreign policy and its security agencies by placing blame for violence at home and abroad solely on Muslims.” Credit: YouTube/CAGE