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Kurdish Fighters Capture 2 British IS Converts Known for Western Beheadings

by VOA News

   U.S.-backed Kurdish fighters have captured two fugitive British Islamic
   State converts -- part of a group of four terrorists known for
   torturing and beheading Westerners, U.S. officials say.

   The officials identify the two as Alexanda Kotey and El Shafee
   el-Sheikh.

   Kotey "likely engaged in the group's executions and exceptionally cruel
   torture methods, including electric shock and waterboarding," the State
   Department has said.

   It also said el-Sheikh "earned a reputation for waterboarding, mock
   executions and crucifixions while serving as an ISIS jailer." ISIS is
   an acronym for the militant group.

   U.S. officials said the Syrian Democratic Forces captured the two in
   eastern Syria in January.

   The wanted men were part of a group of four Islamic State terrorists
   dubbed "The Beatles" because of their British accents. They operated
   out of Raqqa, the former self-declared IS capital in Syria.

   The four became notorious for beheading their Western hostages and
   posting the grisly videos on social media.

   The ringleader, known has "Jihadi John," was killed in a 2015 coalition
   airstrike. A fourth member, Aine Davis, is in a Turkish prison.