“Jihadi John” (Rex Features via AP Images) 
 
 The horrifying video of James Foley’s execution is dominated by three colors. The orange of Foley’s tunic. The taupe of the desert. And the black of an Islamic State militant’s uniform — a uniform worn by a man speaking with what experts think is a British accent. In the span of two days, the masked man has become perhaps the world’s most notorious terrorist. 
 
 But despite the infamy, he remains enigmatic. Where did he come from? How old is he? What drove him to such extremism? 
 
 Answers to those questions are unclear. But the militant now has an identity. As per the British press, the masked man is known as “Jihadi John.” The nickname speaks to claims slowly trickling out about the killer. 
 
 John’s accent, which experts contend signifies London origins, is the source of his alias, the BBC reported in a radio broadcast on Thursday. John is believed to lead a small cadre of three British militants who guard the Islamic State’s foreign hostages. Because of their captors’ accents, hostages called them “John, Paul and Ringo after the Beatles,” the BBC’s Frank Gardner reported on Thursday. 
 
 It’s not surprising that Foley’s executioner was a foreigner — specifically, a Briton. Militants from Britain account for a larger proportion of the Islamic State’s forces than nearly every other Western country. Estimates place their number anywhere from 800 to 1,500. Today, more British Muslims may fight for the Islamic State than for Britain’s own military, according to USA Today and the Times of London, underscoring the militants’ presence in the United Kingdom. Recruiters recently passed out Islamic State propaganda in London advocating enlistment, and supporters flew a black jihadist flag there earlier this month. 
 
 Such fighters are more radicalized than other members of the Islamic State. “Foreign fighters are often used for the most brutal acts because they are the most ideologically motivated,” Peter Neumann, director of the International Center for the Study of Radicalization, told The Washington Post’s Griff Witte. “The locals may say, ‘That’s not the kind of thing we do here.’ But the outsiders don’t know that.” 
 
 Of particular brutality was James Foley’s executioner. John is an “intelligent, educated and a devout believer in radical Islamic teachings,” according to the Guardian, which interviewed a hostage who was also held captive by him. He is reported to have led negotiations with at least eight Western families in the past year for the release of their loved ones, and may have been involved last spring when Islamic State militants released two Spanish journalists. 
 
 But the Islamic State’s correspondence with Foley’s family was different. The group demanded the astronomical sum of $132 million for his release, a “number so absurdly high that private third parties or insurance groups that cover kidnappings would have struggled to pay it,” wrote The Post’s Adam Taylor. It was so high, in fact, that most experts agree the Islamic State never expected to get paid. Foley, it seemed, would be reserved for something else. 
 
 John and the rest of the guards disliked Foley. They seized his laptop, and their subsequent discovery that Foley’s brother served in the U.S. Air Force stirred acts of recrimination, fellow hostage Didier Francois told Europe 1 Radio. “Being an American, he was probably more targeted by the kidnappers,” another captured French journalist told the BBC. “Well, he would be beaten a bit more probably, he was some kind of scapegoat. And the kidnappers knew that his brother was in the U.S. Air Force. He became the whipping-boy of the jailers.” 
 
 One particularly brutal scene came right before Francois’s release in April of this year. The jihadists began to perform mock executions on Foley. “One of the last times I saw him before leaving, the group — which has macabre taste — had forced him to pose as if he was being crucified against a wall,” François said, according to the Wall Street Journal.. 
 
 Finally, on Aug. 12, days before Foley’s execution, his captors sent a final e-mail to Foley’s family. The publication Foley wrote for, GlobalPost, published the letter in full with the permission of Folely’s family. 
 
 “HOW LONG WILL THE SHEEP FOLLOW THE BLIND SHEPPARD?” it read. “…As for the scum of your society who are held by us, THEY DARED TO ENTER THE LION’S DEN AND WHERE EATEN! … Today our swords are unsheathed towards you, GOVERNMENT AND CITIZENS ALIKE! AND WE WILL NOT STOP UNTILL WE QUENCH OUR THIRST FOR YOUR BLOOD. … You and your citizens will pay the price of your bombings! The first of which being the blood of the American citizen, James Foley! He will be executed as a DIRECT result of your transgressions toward us!” ||||| BOSTON, Mass. — American journalist James Foley was murdered by Islamic State militants, who on Aug. 19 publicized the killing in a graphic video uploaded to YouTube. 
 
 On Tuesday, Aug. 12, Foley’s parents received an email from their son’s captors stating that Foley would be “executed.” The Foley family, GlobalPost, government authorities and private security consultants had been investigating Foley’s whereabouts and attempting to secure his release since he was kidnapped on Thanksgiving Day nearly two years ago. 
 
 The terrorist group declared Foley's death would be in retaliation for recent US airstrikes against the Islamic State in Iraq. 
 
 The Islamic State, which is now holding three American hostages in Syria, has since threatened to kill one of them, freelance reporter Steven Sotloff, if the US continues its bombing campaign in Iraq. 
 
 The Foley family has agreed to release the email from Foley’s captors. GlobalPost has chosen to publish it in full in the interest of transparency and to fully tell Jim's story. We believe the text offers insight into the motivations and tactics of the Islamic State. 
 
 In addition to the extreme views it espouses, the email contains factual inaccuracies. For example, the Foley family was not “given many chances to negotiate” for Jim’s release. After more than a year without contact, the Foleys received their first message from Jim’s captors on Nov. 26, 2013, asking for money, fast. After the militants had proved to the Foleys and investigators that they were in fact holding Jim, they made their sole demand for a ransom of 100 million euros (about $132 million) or the release of unspecified prisoners held by the United States. 
 
 The next time the Foley family heard from the captors was on Aug. 12, 2014. They received this email: 
 
 HOW LONG WILL THE SHEEP FOLLOW THE BLIND SHEPPARD? 
 
 A message to the American government and their sheep like citizens: 
 
 We have left you alone since your disgraceful defeat in Iraq. We did not interfere in your country or attack your citizens while they were safe in their homes despite our capability to do so! 
 
 As for the scum of your society who are held prisoner by us, THEY DARED TO ENTER THE LION’S DEN AND WHERE EATEN! 
 
 You were given many chances to negotiate the release of your people via cash transactions as other governments have accepted, 
 
 We have also offered prisoner exchanges to free the Muslims currently in your detention like our sister Dr Afia Sidiqqi, however you proved very quickly to us that this is NOT what you are interested in. 
 
 You have no motivation to deal with the Muslims except with the language of force, a language you were given in “Arabic translation” when you attempted to occupy the land of Iraq! 
 
 Now you return to bomb the Muslims of Iraq once again, this time resorting to Arial attacks and “proxy armies”, all the while cowardly shying away from a face-to-face confrontation! 
 
 Today our swords are unsheathed towards you, GOVERNMENT AND CITIZENS ALIKE! AND WE WILL NOT STOP UNTILL WE QUENCH OUR THIRST FOR YOUR BLOOD. 
 
 You do not spare our weak, elderly, women or children so we will NOT spare yours! 
 
 You and your citizens will pay the price of your bombings! 
 
 The first of which being the blood of the American citizen, James Foley! 
 
 He will be executed as a DIRECT result of your transgressions towards us! ||||| An international manhunt is under way for the jihadist, believed to be British, who appeared in video footage showing the beheading of American journalist James Foley. 
 
 Police are analysing footage of Mr Foley's death for clues amid suggestions that the Islamic State (Isis) extremist - who has been reportedly identified by a former hostage as "John" - is from London. The FBI is leading the search for the killer. 
 
 Didier François, a former hostage who was released by Isis in April, told Europe 1 Radio he had some idea of who the killer could be. 
 
 According to a translation by The Telegraph, the 53-year-old French journalist said: “Recognised is a very big word. I see roughly who it is.” 
 
 Mr François said he had been held with Mr Foley from last August until April and that he was also held almost nine months with fellow journalist Steven Sotloff. 
 
 "He [Foley] was an extraordinary person with a strong character. He was a pleasant companion in detention because he was solid and collective. He never gave in to the pressure and violence of the kidnappers," Mr François added. 
 
 He had not spoken of Mr Foley and Mr Sotloff until now because he was warned upon his release that if he told the public he had been held with them, reprisals would follow against them. 
 
 He said: "Their exact words were: ‘They’ll be punished’.” 
 
 In a separate interview, he told Reuters he believed Mr Foley was under the control of Isis or its affiliates the entire time. 
 
 "The guy who killed him is the guy who took him from the start." 
 
 Video: Does Isis pose a threat to the UK? 
 
 He said Mr Foley had been singled out and subjected to extra beatings because his captors had discovered pictures of his brother, who works for the US Air Force. 
 
 Nicolas Hénin, an independent reporter who was also taken captive by Isis, told L’Express magazine Mr Foley became “the whipping boy of jailors”. 
 
 "Because of that and as he was American, he got extra bad treatment. He became the whipping boy of the jailers but he remained implacable," Mr Henin said. 
 
 In pictures: James Foley 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 7 show all In pictures: James Foley 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 1/7 James Foley Freelance photo-journalist James Foley (left) on the highway between the airport and the West Gate of Sirte, Libya AFP 
 
 2/7 James Foley James Foley responds to questions during an interview with The Associated Press, in Boston AP 
 
 3/7 James Foley James Foley responds to questions during an interview with The Associated Press, in Boston AP 
 
 4/7 James Foley James Foley rests in Syria, 2012 Manu Brabo via freejamesfoley.org 
 
 5/7 James Foley US photo-journalist James Foley resting in a room at the airport of Sirte, Libya. Jihadist group the Islamic State claim to have executed American journalist James Foley in revenge for US air strikes against its fighters in Iraq AFP 
 
 6/7 James Foley John and Diane Foley, parents of James Foley, at a Free James Foley event on 3 May, 2013 Getty 
 
 7/7 James Foley A ribbon is tied to a tree outside the home of American freelance journalist James Foley in Rochester, N.H AP 
 
 Another former hostage, who was held for a year in the Syrian town of Raqqa, told The Guardian the killer was the ringleader of a trio of UK-born extremists the captives nicknamed "The Beatles" because of their nationality. 
 
 The Guardian's Martin Chulov told Sky News: "We spoke to a hostage today who was released several months ago and he clearly identified to us this man in the video. 
 
 The hostage said the fighter was "the leader of the pack, someone who was very assertive and was responsible for negotiations with hostage families and certainly had spoken to many mums, dads, (and) wives on Skype". 
 
 Richard Barrett, the former MI6 director of global counter-terrorism, told BBC Radio 4's Today programme tracing the killer is possible, but there would be “huge problems involved” with bringing him to justice. 
 
 Shiraz Maher, a senior researcher at the International Centre for the Study of Radicalization at King's College London, said Mr Foley's death was evidence that British jihadis were "some of the most vicious and vociferous fighters" in the Middle East and “very much at the forefront of this conflict” with roles ranging from suicide bombers to executioners. 
 
 Earlier today, US officials confirmed that a Special Operations mission tried and failed to free Mr Foley and other hostages in Syria weeks before he was murdered by militants. 
 
 The White House and Pentagon released statements yesterday confirming that President Barack Obama personally authorised the July raid on an oil refinery in northern Syria. 
 
 The mission failed because the hostages, thought to have been held there in the weeks leading up to the operation, had recently been moved. 
 
 The British Prime Minister, David Cameron, and Mr Obama have condemned the murder of Mr Foley as "hateful" and "barbaric", insisting it would not force them to back away from tackling Isis in Iraq and Syria. 
 
 The video shows a man, thought to be James Foley, kneeling in front of a black-clad militant 
 
 Mr Cameron, who has since resumed his holiday in Cornwall after returning to Downing Street when the video surfaced, said it seemed "increasingly likely" that the killer was a UK citizen. 
 
 "Let's be clear what this act is - it is an act of murder, and murder without any justification," Mr Cameron told reporters at No 10. 
 
 Mr Obama said "no just God" could condone the killing of Mr Foley, who was seized in Syria in 2012, and Isis would "fail" because they only wanted to destroy. 
 
 The murdered journalist's younger brother Michael criticised the American government, saying he thought it could have done more to save him. 
 
 One of the agencies Mr Foley worked for,GlobalPost, has said Isis threatened to execute him a week ago and the US authorities were informed. 
 
 The film shows Mr Foley, 40, who worked for organisations including Agence France-Presse and went missing in Syria in 2012, kneeling in a desert-like environment at an unknown location as an Isis fighter stands by his side dressed in black and with his face covered. 
 
 The militant with a man thought to be the journalist Steven Sotloff 
 
 The footage has been authenticated by the US and UK, but Scotland Yard has urged people to avoid spreading it through Twitter and Facebook - warning that to do so could be a criminal offence. 
 
 The US is thought to be considering an additional deployment of troops to Iraq to help repel the Isis offensive that has secured swathes of the country. 
 
 But Mr Cameron stressed there would be no "knee jerk" escalation of British military involvement - warning that the West faced a "generational struggle" against Islamist extremism. 
 
 "I have been very clear that this country is not going to get involved in another Iraq war. We are not putting combat troops, combat boots on the ground, that is not something we should do." 
 
 Additional reporting by agencies
– James Foley's Catholic parents received a call from Pope Francis himself yesterday to console them on the gruesome death of their son. The pontiff was "very compassionate, very loving," and spoke to the New Hampshire couple through a translator for around 20 minutes, a family friend tells the New York Daily News. Meanwhile, Foley's former employer, GlobalPost, has released the full text of the last email sent to Foley's parents by his captors, with the family's permission. "You and your citizens will pay the price of your bombings!" the Aug. 12 message declares, addressing both his parents and the US government. "Now you return to bomb the Muslims of Iraq once again, this time resorting to Arial (sic) attacks and 'proxy armies,' all the while cowardly shying away from a face-to-face confrontation!" It alleges that the US passed up chances to pay a ransom or swap prisoners, and ends by saying that Foley will be executed "as a DIRECT result of your transgressions towards us!" Read it in full here. In other developments: Other foreigners held alongside Foley says ISIS militants, including British-accented executioner "John the Jihadi," treated the captured journalist more harshly than other captives, the Washington Post reports. "He was some kind of scapegoat," a captured French journalist who's since been released tells the BBC. "And the kidnappers knew that his brother was in the US Air Force. He became the whipping-boy of the jailers." He says militants performed mock executions on Foley, and he witnessed them force him to "pose as if he was being crucified against a wall." The militants have threatened to execute captive US journalist Steven Sotloff next, but he is just one of up to 20 Westerners believed to be ISIS captives, reports the Telegraph. They are believed to include Vanessa Marzullo, 21, and Greta Ramelli, 20, two Italian aid workers who vanished in Syria earlier this month, as well as three Red Cross workers seized last fall. Senior Pentagon officials describe ISIS as a group with an "apocalyptic, end-of-days strategic vision which will eventually have to be defeated"—but they warn that fighting the group effectively will have to involve strikes on Syria. Senior British officials say the country's military is likely to end up joining any American military action against the group, the Guardian reports.