Killing of Jihadi John fully justified

NOTHING — not even the deliberate destruction of historic sites — has depicted the appalling barbarism of the so-called Islamic State group more graphically than the executioner known as “Jihadi John”. 

So, no tears were shed after the US air force announced with a “high degree of certainty” that this monstrous figure has been killed in a drone strike.

Under his real name, the Kuwaiti-born British militant Mohammed Emwazi was used by the group to strike terror into its enemies in the Middle East, Europe, and America by showing him beheading Western hostages, including several journalists. The attack was carried out in Syria, where a vehicle carrying the killer was destroyed in a direct hit.

Even the most committed pacifist will concede that targeting him was exactly the right thing to do, because it sends a clear message that leaders of the group are not safe, by illustrating the level of intelligence available to the US forces. Even if his death were to act as a recruiting sergeant for Islamic State, the world is certainly a better place without “Jihadi John”.