MOSCOW, August 22 (RIA Novosti) – An e-mail that James Foley’s captors sent to his family days before the US journalist’s beheading contained spelling and grammar mistakes that are common in Britons with a working-class background, language experts told The Telegraph Friday.
“There is a lot in the letter to suggest it came from a native speaker of English… Some of the spelling mistakes are very common in native speakers,” the UK daily cited Claire Hardaker from Lancaster University as saying.
According to Dr. Hardaker, the author’s spelling of the word “shepherd” as “sheppard,” which is a common British surname, is one of telltale signs that the Islamic State militant may have come from the UK.
She said the letter also had a few metaphors, such as “language of force” and “lion’s den,” an indication of the writer’s linguistic creativity which is usually the last level of language learning.
“In a non-native speaker, one of the last levels in language learning is the level of creativity or humor. It would be very unusual to find the use of creative metaphors in a non-native speaker,” Dr. Hardaker told The Telegraph.
Several grammar mistakes that are common in spoken English and the captor’s “strong grasp” of clauses linking complex sentences also proved the author of the letter, who accused the United States of “transgressions” toward the IS group, had been raised in Britain, very likely by a working-class family.
Claire Hardaker added however it was impossible to locate the terrorist from his angry letter, but UK media reports claimed the killer in the video of Foley’s execution spoke with a “southern London” accent.
Islamic State insurgents released a video on Tuesday showing the beheading of James Foley, a US journalist, captured by jihadists in Syria in 2012. Militants said the execution came in response to US drone and air attacks against the IS forces in northern Iraq.
