Intelligence officers have identified the Islamic State fighter nicknamed Jihadi John, who has appeared taunting and killing several hostages in Islamic State videos, according to reports Thursday.

The BBC said it “understands he is Mohammed Emwazi, a British man believed to be from west London, who was known to British security services.”

The security services “chose not to disclose his name earlier for operational reasons,” it said.

The Washington Post quoted a former close friend of Emwazi as saying he had “no doubt that Mohammed is Jihadi John.”

“He was like a brother to me … I am sure it is him,” the unidentified friend was quoted as saying.

A staff member of a London-based human rights group, who had contact with Emwazi before he left for Syria, also told the newspaper he saw “an extremely strong resemblance” with Emwazi after watching videos of Jihadi John. SAPA