ISIS burn captured Jordanian pilot alive

Even by the sick standards of the Islamic State - whose fighters have tortured, beheaded, executed, crucified and stoned its victims - yesterday's brutal execution of Jordanian pilot Moaz al-Kasasbeh plunged to new depths.

The shocking video, released yesterday afternoon, shows the captured airman trapped in a cage, being engulfed by a trail of flames, in gruesome footage which sent shockwaves around the globe.

And it appears the ISIS PR machine was well-aware of the stir the execution footage would cause, even before the disturbing images were circulated online.

Just ten minutes after the video was released, the jihadist group published a checklist of justifications, in a bid to encourage ISIS supporters to defend the barbaric actions.

The post, uploaded onto pro-ISIS jihadi forum Al-Platform, offered guidance to ISIS sympathisers over what they should say if questioned about the merits of the brutal murder.

In the post, entitled 'Moaz Was Burnt Alive, Below Is the Islamic Justification for Such an Act', it gives a list of apparent defences which it says might be in accordance with Islamic principles.

It then concludes: 'This is what you should say if confronted about these actions.'

In the sickening video, the pilot is seemingly doused in fuel, as a trail of petrol leading up to the iron bars of the cage is seen being set alight.

Flames then quickly spread across the dirt to the cage, where they completely engulf the helpless pilot in images that are far too distressing to publish.

Extremists then pour debris, including broken masonry, over the cage, which is later flattened by a bulldozer.

In the advisory post, it says people were 'going to ask themselves whether or not this is approved by religion', vocativ reports. 

But it then adds: 'Most scholars think nowadays it is fine to burn the victim.'

The post does not provide any clear religious basis for the execution, but other forum members later commented on the post with their own selection of religious justifications.

It is not the first time the militant group has published guidance for its followers on such sickening subject.

In December, the group released what appears to be a pamphlet providing its followers with guidelines on how to capture, keep and sexually abuse female slaves.

Among the most shocking rules were that it is 'permissible' to rape a female slave 'immediately after taking possession of her' and that it is 'permissible to have intercourse with the female slave who hasn't reached puberty if she is fit for intercourse'.

The pilot was captured in December by triumphant ISIS fighters when his F-16 jet crashed near the group's Syrian headquarters of Raqqa during a US-Coalition led airstrike.

Credit: Mail online