The Islamic State (ISIS) publicly beheaded a man for allegedly practicing witchcraft in a bordering village with Turkey, a relative revealed to Zaman al-Wasl.
The extremist group accused Mohamed Alaa el-Din Absi of magic after "talismans" were found in his pocket, but the objects were for nothing more than religious prayers, claimed Absi’s relative, Abu Mohamed al-Halabi.
Absi was photographed being beheaded by a masked executioner in al-Raei border village north of Aleppo.
Photographs of the barbaric execution were released by Wilayet Halab, an ISIS-affiliated media website.
An image shows Absi being led to the execution site by a militant with a crowd of dozens of onlookers witnessing the gruesome scene. Another photograph shows Absi kneeling on the floor with his arms bound behind his back, his head resting and a sword centimeters from his neck.
Absi, who studied physical engineering, was arrested on November 2014 by ISIS in al-Raei village while visiting his family.
Halabi said: “the shock was unbearable when we saw the beheading photos on social media. All we knew was that he was moved from al-Bab prison to al-Qabbasin town by ISIS, after the ISIS stronghold was targeted by US-collation air strikes”.
The victim's relative added, "we know nothing about his body, where it was buried."
ISIS is said to have been cracking down on all forms of magic, as ISIS does not take the threat of supernatural forces lightly, according to U.S. Vice news.
