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John Cantlie
- Thread starter The Rivet
- Start date
- Thread starter
- #2
I am still wondering...
John Henry Cantlie is a British war photographer and correspondent who was kidnapped in Syria with James Foley in November 2012 and remains a hostage. He had previously been kidnapped in Syria in July 2012 but was rescued a week later.
Cantlie had not appeared in western print or on social media since his rescue, and the trial of one of his alleged captors collapsed in 2013, when he could not be summoned as a witness. In November 2012, it was revealed Cantlie had been abducted a second time, along with American journalist James Foley. Their taxi driver and Foley's translator were not taken, however. They had reportedly been working together on a film about Cantlie’s first abduction. Foley was beheaded in August 2014.
After disappearing for almost two years following his second abduction in late 2012, Cantlie resurfaced on 18 September 2014 in a video posted by the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant in the first episode of a multi-part series entitled Lend Me Your Ears. As of February 2015, ISIL has released a total of six videos in the Lend Me Your Ears series, all of which feature Cantlie speaking while sitting at a wooden table and wearing orange prison garb against a black backdrop. In the videos, Cantlie adopts a critical position toward Western foreign policy, including military actions, political statements, and media coverage. Cantlie is particularly critical of US and British hostage policy, comparing it unfavourably to the policy of other European countries that negotiate and pay for the release of hostages.
ISIL has released three additional videos apart from the Lend Me Your Ears series. These videos are noteworthy for depicting Cantlie as a Western journalist rather than a Western hostage. In all videos, Cantlie attempts to characterise the facts on the ground in Kobane, Mosul and then rebel-controlled Aleppo as far more favourable to ISIL than is portrayed in the Western media
Since he is speaking as an ISIL prisoner, it is unclear whether and to what degree he actually holds the views he states. His sister, Jessica, has stated that her brother "believes two-thirds" of what he says in the videos
On 28 July 2017, the Iraqi Al-Sura News Agency alleged that Cantlie had been killed, after the Agency conducted interviews with three captured IS militants
Questions and Theories:
1)How do we trust these three ISIS fighters on Cantlie? Al-Sura did not mention how close they were to Amaq News Agency (which published videos feat. Cantlie). Are these fighters a part of the ISIS Media apparatus? Are they higher up and close to Abu Bakr Al-Baghdadi?
2)If Cantlie's truly dead, where's the body? While Mosul is still a rubbled mess, it is unknown if The Iraqi Security Forces and Red Crescent can ever identify John Cantlie's body. Considering how his appearances in his last few videos have made him resemble any other typical Western or Russian ISIS fighter, it'd definitely take DNA to identify Cantlie amongst the other dead foreign ISIS fighters. The question is whether or not Iraq is interested in identifying dead fighters and send them back to their countries of origin.
3)What happened to the taxi driver and translators for Cantlie and Foley? Why hasn't any reporter from The West and The Arab World caught up to them? Are they the ones who ratted out both Cantlie and Foley to their kidnappers?
4)What if Cantlie is still alive? Considering how he has resembled a Western ISIS fighter in his last few videos, it wouldn't be impossible for him to sneak out of Mosul when ISIS fighters were fleeing once Mosul fell. If he is still alive, then he is either still captured in ISIS' hands back in Syria or has Stockholm Syndrome and has joined ISIS' ranks himself.
5)Why didn't Britain helped free him like they did in 2012? His rescue could've provided The British government with tons of info about ISIS, from their strategies to their recruitment of British fighters. The fact that no one in the British government has ever attempted a rescue of Cantlie is bizarre, considering the valuable information he would be giving.
The situations considering Cantlie's "death" and capture raises more questions than answers. This is definitely a developing mystery, a true crime case of the Syrian Civil War. Until The Iraqi and/or British governments confirmed his death and provided more information, John Cantlie's status since June 2017 remains a mystery.
Everyone else still unwilling to speculate?
John Henry Cantlie is a British war photographer and correspondent who was kidnapped in Syria with James Foley in November 2012 and remains a hostage. He had previously been kidnapped in Syria in July 2012 but was rescued a week later.
Cantlie had not appeared in western print or on social media since his rescue, and the trial of one of his alleged captors collapsed in 2013, when he could not be summoned as a witness. In November 2012, it was revealed Cantlie had been abducted a second time, along with American journalist James Foley. Their taxi driver and Foley's translator were not taken, however. They had reportedly been working together on a film about Cantlie’s first abduction. Foley was beheaded in August 2014.
After disappearing for almost two years following his second abduction in late 2012, Cantlie resurfaced on 18 September 2014 in a video posted by the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant in the first episode of a multi-part series entitled Lend Me Your Ears. As of February 2015, ISIL has released a total of six videos in the Lend Me Your Ears series, all of which feature Cantlie speaking while sitting at a wooden table and wearing orange prison garb against a black backdrop. In the videos, Cantlie adopts a critical position toward Western foreign policy, including military actions, political statements, and media coverage. Cantlie is particularly critical of US and British hostage policy, comparing it unfavourably to the policy of other European countries that negotiate and pay for the release of hostages.
ISIL has released three additional videos apart from the Lend Me Your Ears series. These videos are noteworthy for depicting Cantlie as a Western journalist rather than a Western hostage. In all videos, Cantlie attempts to characterise the facts on the ground in Kobane, Mosul and then rebel-controlled Aleppo as far more favourable to ISIL than is portrayed in the Western media
Since he is speaking as an ISIL prisoner, it is unclear whether and to what degree he actually holds the views he states. His sister, Jessica, has stated that her brother "believes two-thirds" of what he says in the videos
On 28 July 2017, the Iraqi Al-Sura News Agency alleged that Cantlie had been killed, after the Agency conducted interviews with three captured IS militants
Questions and Theories:
1)How do we trust these three ISIS fighters on Cantlie? Al-Sura did not mention how close they were to Amaq News Agency (which published videos feat. Cantlie). Are these fighters a part of the ISIS Media apparatus? Are they higher up and close to Abu Bakr Al-Baghdadi?
2)If Cantlie's truly dead, where's the body? While Mosul is still a rubbled mess, it is unknown if The Iraqi Security Forces and Red Crescent can ever identify John Cantlie's body. Considering how his appearances in his last few videos have made him resemble any other typical Western or Russian ISIS fighter, it'd definitely take DNA to identify Cantlie amongst the other dead foreign ISIS fighters. The question is whether or not Iraq is interested in identifying dead fighters and send them back to their countries of origin.
3)What happened to the taxi driver and translators for Cantlie and Foley? Why hasn't any reporter from The West and The Arab World caught up to them? Are they the ones who ratted out both Cantlie and Foley to their kidnappers?
4)What if Cantlie is still alive? Considering how he has resembled a Western ISIS fighter in his last few videos, it wouldn't be impossible for him to sneak out of Mosul when ISIS fighters were fleeing once Mosul fell. If he is still alive, then he is either still captured in ISIS' hands back in Syria or has Stockholm Syndrome and has joined ISIS' ranks himself.
5)Why didn't Britain helped free him like they did in 2012? His rescue could've provided The British government with tons of info about ISIS, from their strategies to their recruitment of British fighters. The fact that no one in the British government has ever attempted a rescue of Cantlie is bizarre, considering the valuable information he would be giving.
The situations considering Cantlie's "death" and capture raises more questions than answers. This is definitely a developing mystery, a true crime case of the Syrian Civil War. Until The Iraqi and/or British governments confirmed his death and provided more information, John Cantlie's status since June 2017 remains a mystery.
Everyone else still unwilling to speculate?
- Thread starter
- #4
I take it that you didn't see the original thread. Can't say you're to blame seeing as even an official search can't find it now. That's fine take umbridge if it helps.
Sussex Nomad
Well-known member
Where's the original thread? It may make more sense.