Zimbabwe born and suspected ISIS member, Raymond Matimba, is reported to be a key member of the terror group who trains its snipers.
According to The Telegraph of Britain, its sources had revealed the face of British terrorist Mohamed Emwazi, whose other names also included “Jihadi John” and “Jailer John,” after receiving exclusive video footage of the terrorists inside Syria.
Matimba was linked to the recent Manchester terror attacks.
Matimba, who was born in Zimbabwe, but lived in Manchester before joining ISIS, was filmed in a cafe in Raqqa, Syria, talking with the likes of Mohammed Emwazi, aka Jihadi John, ISIS hacker Junaid Hussain, and recruiter Reyaad Khan.
According to the newspaper, the video showed that Matimba, long thought to be a fringe figure in the terror group, was actually a key figure and is now likely to be the UK’s most wanted terrorists – if he is still alive.
The footage was captured by a source in Raqqa in 2014 who gave it to the newspaper after the area of the city he lives in was liberated by US-backed SDF forces, who now have the city surrounded.
Matimba – who also goes by the name Abu Qaqa al-Britani al-Afro- is known to have links with Manchester Arena bomber Salman Abedi, as the pair were recruited to join ISIS by the same man, Raphael Hostey.
They are also thought to have visited the same mosque together in south Manchester before Matimba left the UK, first going to Barcelona and then to Turkey where he crossed into Syria.
The recorder of the video told The Telegraph that Matimba was a key figure in the Manchester attack, telling ISIS commanders that he hated the city and wanted it to become a target.
He is then thought to have exchanged messages with Abedi in the months leading up to the attack, which killed 22 people, though what was said is unclear.
The source also said Matimba was known for his skills with a rifle and trained ISIS snipers. In every photo and the video, he is shown with an AK at his side.
Matimba’s fate is currently unknown. His family says he updated them on his life in Raqqa until last year when he stopped responding.
It had been reported he was killed in the fighting, but his death has never been confirmed.
Now-deceased ISIS executioner Emwazi was born in Kuwait, but raised in west London, where he was reported to have enjoyed a typical childhood and schooling.
ISIS claims he was radicalised sometime in 2005, after the London bombings, before making several trips to the Middle East over the next few years. www.zifmnews.com
