Sen. Saxby Chambliss on Monday appeared to agree with new thinking that American journalists James Foley and Steven Sotloff were
killed by two different executioners.
In an interview on CNN's
"The Situation Room with Wolf Blitzer," Chambliss three times referred to the killers in the plural, once saying specifically that there were two of them.
Initially, British and U.S. officials thought the two journalists may have been beheaded by the same person and at the same time, even though video of Foley's execution was released by the Islamic State (ISIS) on Aug. 19 and video of Sotloff's killing was released on Sept. 2.
But Sotloff's hair and beard were longer in his execution video than they were in the video of Foley's killing, when ISIS members threatened to behead Sotloff next if U.S. bombing of ISIS targets in Iraq did not stop.
Both executioners had British accents, but the voice of the one in the second video was digitally altered and his hands were covered. Experts on TV news shows had noted after the first video's release that blood vessels in the hands could be used for identification, much like fingerprints.
Otherwise, both executioners were covered completely except for slits in their headgear that showed their eyes.
Investigators now think the beheadings may well have been performed by different members of ISIS.
Chambliss, vice chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee, receives regular briefings from the White House on the matter and told CNN he thinks investigators are within days of identifying Foley's killer.
CNN's Brianna Keilar asked the Georgia Republican if he knew from his intelligence briefings whether there were two separate executioners. Chambliss didn't answer, but said, "I'm very hopeful there's going to be some positive news on who these two awful criminals are within the next several days."
He used the plural two other times in the interview, saying, "the individuals that killed Mr. Foley and Mr. Sotloff," and ended with, "We're going to find out who these guys were, and they're going to be brought to justice."
© 2024 Newsmax. All rights reserved.