Islamic State 'Beatles' charged in US over hostages' deaths

 Two ex-British alleged Islamic State (IS) suspects have been charged in the US with terrorism offences over the killing of four American hostages.

 

Alexanda Kotey and El Shafee Elsheikh are accused of belonging to an IS cell dubbed "The Beatles" involved in kidnappings in Iraq and Syria.

The pair are being held in FBI custody and will appear in a US federal court in Virginia later.

The men, previously in US military custody in Iraq, deny the charges.

US Assistant Attorney General John Demers told a press conference the charges were "the result of many years of hard work in pursuit of justice" for the four Americans who died - James Foley, Steven Sotloff, Kayla Mueller and Peter Kassig.

Addressing the families of the victims, he said: "Although we cannot bring back your children, we will do all that we can do: obtain justice for them, for you, and for all Americans."

He added: "These men will now be brought before a United States court to face justice for the depraved acts alleged against them in the indictment."

The charges carry a maximum penalty of life in prison

 

 

The pair are alleged to have been members of an IS gang - nicknamed by hostages after the 1960s pop group due to their British accents - which was responsible for the death of hostages in Iraq and Syria in 2014.

The victims - who included American journalists and UK and US aid workers - were beheaded and their deaths filmed and broadcast on social media.

Kotey and Elsheikh, from west London, were previously stripped of their UK nationality.

The charges they face are:

• Conspiracy to commit hostage taking resulting in death
• Hostage taking resulting in death
• Conspiracy to murder United States citizens outside of the United States
• Conspiracy to provide material support to terrorists - hostage taking and murder - resulting in death
• Conspiracy to provide material support to a designated foreign terrorist organisation resulting in death

 

 

FBI director Christopher Wray told the US press conference: "We mourn not only our American victims but also the British victims David Haines and Alan Henning, and victims of all nations who suffered unimaginable cruelty at the hands of Isis."

The IS group's alleged ringleader, Mohammed Emwazi, known as "Jihadi John" died in a drone strike in 2016.

Referring to his death, Mr Demers said he had "faced a different kind of American resolve - the mighty reach of our military, which successfully targeted him in an air strike several years ago".

He was asked by reporters whether the death penalty was not being sought solely because the UK government had made it a requirement in return for their co-operation.

"The attorney general decided that we should provide the death penalty assurance in order to get the British evidence and see that justice could be done more expeditiously than if we had to continue to litigate this issue in the courts in the United Kingdom," he said.

"The decision was to try to keep the option (of seeking the death penalty) open at first but ultimately that didn't work."

Last month the UK sent evidence to the US following assurances the two men would not face the death penalty.

 

https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-54449482