‘Jihadi John’ Father Jasem Emwazi in 'State of Shock'
— -- After being interrogated by Kuwaiti authorities, Jasem Emwazi is still reeling following the public identification of his son, Mohammed Emwazi, as the alleged cold-blooded ISIS executioner “Jihadi John,” the elder Emwazi’s attorney told ABC News today.
“He is in a state of shock from the story and needs time to deal with all the pressure from the media,” the attorney, Salem al-Hashash, said.
Jasem Emwazi declined to comment to ABC News, the first Western news outlet to have met him since Mohammed was identified, in the attorney’s office. Emwazi, dressed in white, showed no emotion as he politely greeted ABC News reporters in Arabic, but said nothing else.
Al-Hashash said Jasem Emwazi was questioned by Kuwaiti authorities about his son for two or three hours, but was then released. He is not a suspect in activities related to his son, the attorney said.
Al-Hashash said only Mohammed Emwazi’s father was questioned and not his mother, as had been previously reported. Kuwaiti authorities told ABC News Monday Jasem Emwazi had said his wife quickly recognized her son as the alleged killer from the first beheading video when it emerged online in August. Al-Hashash declined to confirm or deny that allegation.
Mohammed Emwazi, publicly identified last week as “Jihadi John,” is believed to have appeared in at least seven ISIS execution videos, several times apparently taking a knife to ISIS’s victims himself.
