'Jihadi Jack' thrown in jail by Kurdish forces' after leaving Isis territory

'I hate [Isis] more than the Americans hate them', former Oxford schoolboy says

The jury was shown a photo of Jack Letts posing at the Tabqa Dam outside Raqqa (Facebook)

A former Oxford schoolboy known as ‘Jihadi Jack’, is reportedly being held in a Kurdish jail after fleeing from Isis.

Jack Letts was suspected of travelling to Syria to fight for the terrorist group. It is thought the 21-year-old who adopted the name Abu Muhammed, has been living in an Isis-controlled area of the Middle Eastern country since 2014.

In an exclusive interview with The Independent last year, Mr Letts denied he had joined Isis but said he believed in Sharia law. He also argued that atrocities committed by the group’s militants in Syria were “not as bad” as those overseen by the US-led coalition.

Mr Letts is now being held in solitary confinement by Kurdish forces in north-east Syria, he told BBC News, adding that he had completely distanced himself from Isis.

He added that the militant group had “put me in prison three times and threatened to kill me”, before he managed to escape through a minefield with the help of a smuggler.

“I hate [Isis] more than the Americans hate them,” he said. “I realised they were not upon the truth. I don’t want anyone to help me. I’ll just chill here in solitary confinement until someone decides it’s easier to kill me.”

He said he had become disillusioned with Isis when it murdered its former supporters last year.

He had gone to the Syrian city of Raqqa to recover from injuries sustained during an explosion, while his wife and child remain living in Iraq, he added.

Mr Letts’ parents, who claimed their son travelled to the Middle East to help refugees, pleaded not guilty to charges of funding terrorism in December after they were accused of sending money to Syria.

Last year Mr Letts, who converted to Islam while attending Cherwell comprehensive school, acknowledged that he would “probably” be put in jail if he attempted to return to the UK.

But he told Alaraby TV he would like “to see my mum, and explain to her some things”.