Foreign Ministry reveals: Sotloff Israeli citizen

IS picture: Reuters
IS picture: Reuters

US-born Steven Sotloff immigrated to Israel in 2005.

Steven Sotloff, the US journalist beheaded by Islamic State (IS), held Israeli citizenship, Israel announced today. The information was previously withheld in order to reduce the risk to Sotloff as a hostage. "It has been released for publication that Steven Sotloff of blessed memory was an Israeli citizen," Paul Hirschson, a spokesman for the Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs, wrote on his Twitter account.

IS, a rebel organization operating in Syria and Iraq, published photographs of Sotloff's execution, which it described as revenge for US air attacks in Iraq. The White House announced today that the video file was authentic.

Israeli media devoted extensive coverage to the killing of Sotloff, whom they described as a 31 year-old Jew who published articles in the "Jerusalem Report" and "Jerusalem Post"on occasion. After IS announced two weeks ago that Sotloff was next, Israeli media refrained from reporting these particulars. "We refused to acknowledge any relationship with him in case it was dangerous for him," explained Jerusalem Report editor Avi Hoffman, who published articles by Sotloff.

"Yedioth Ahronoth" quoted another former Islamic State captive as saying that Sotloff concealed from the Islamic rebels the fact he was Jewish, and managed to fast on Yom Kippur by feigning sickness. The media reported that US-born Sotloff immigrated to Israel in 2005, and studied at the Herzliya Interdisciplinary Center.

Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes-online.com - on September 3, 2014

© Copyright of Globes Publisher Itonut (1983) Ltd. 2014

IS picture: Reuters
IS picture: Reuters
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