Jihadi John has been reportedly located in Syria, but sources say British forces have been unable to finish off the ISIS terrorist responsible for beheading American and British captives.
Sources say the ISIS militant has been located in the Syrian city of Raqqa, which has been serving as the center of the terrorist group’s operations in the region. Though officials may know his location, actually killing Jihadi John is a much more difficult matter, they claim.
Surveillance drones above terrorist strongholds have found hostages wearing orange jumpsuits and noted that the positions are very well defensed, making a “kill or capture” mission nearly impossible. Instead, special forces believe a sustained bombing campaign would be more effective.
“The imagery from the drones and satellites is instructive but IS infrastructure in Raqqa would have to be targeted over a sustained period to make any sort of raid a realistic possibility,” a source told the Daily Mail . “On the basis of our current advice there is very little chance of the Prime Minister signing off a rescue bid. The prospect of success has got to be 100 per cent or thereabouts, and at the moment it is nowhere near that. And for now there are not many other options on the table.”
Jihadi John was heard on videos released by ISIS speaking in a British accent and is believed to be a British citizen. Intelligence forces from the U.K. say they have identified the militant, but have not disclosed his identity.
U.K. Prime Minister David Cameron has vowed to send in special forces troops to capture Jihadi John, saying he would not wait for Parliamentary approval before ordering such a mission to capture or kill him .
Some officials have said the chances of capturing Jihadi John alive are very slim. Government officials told the Daily Telegraph that it is extremely unlikely he would be captured alive given the volatile situation in Syria. The officials added that a drone airstrike killing Jihadi John is more likely possibility.
