Pro-ISIS group release propaganda image of ‘beheaded' Pope Francis days after vowing 'Christmas blood' in poster showing a masked man driving towards St Peter's Basilica
- Pro-ISIS Wafa Media Foundation released a chilling image of the pope beheaded
- The sickening poster shows a jihadist standing over Pope Francis with a knife
- It comes days after ISIS threatened to launch a Christmas attack on the Vatican
- Last Christmas saw terrorist Anis Amri drive a truck into a Berlin festive market
A pro-ISIS group has released a chilling propaganda poster depicting a beheaded Pope Francis.
In the gruesome picture - which MailOnline has chosen not to show in its entirety - a jihadist stands over the orange-jumpsuited body of a prisoner and clutches the decapitated head of Pope Francis.
The terrorist on the poster is clad in khaki with a white scarf over his face and a knife in one hand as he stands in front of several damaged buildings.
Next to the severed head is the pope's name, 'Jorge Mario Bergoglio'.
A pro-ISIS group has released an image of a beheaded Pope Francis. The poster, which MailOnline has chosen not to show in its entirety, is the latest in a series of ISIS propaganda posters
Wafa Media Group, a pro-ISIS organisation, posted this image online last week threatening to attack the Vatican on Christmas
The image was circulated by the pro-ISIS Wafa Media Foundation and it comes just days after they threatened to launch a Christmas terror attack on the Vatican.
The previous poster showed a masked figure driving towards St Peter's Basilica with a gun and a backpack inside his car.
At the top of the poster is the message 'Christmas blood' with the line 'so wait...' written in red underneath.
The image first appeared on anonymous messaging app Telegram last week, according to terror monitoring group MEMRI.
Such posters do not typically warn of a direct threat, but act as a call to action for lone wolf attackers who may be waiting to strike.
Analysts have warned of a possible upsurge in ISIS attacks overseas following the collapse of their so-called Caliphate in the Middle East.
The terror group typically uses such attacks as a means of exerting fear and making their influence felt at a time when their power is diminishing.
ISIS has previously used Christmas celebrations as a focus for their attacks. Last year terrorist Anis Amri drove a truck into a festive market in Berlin, killing 12
In 2015 Rizwan Farook launched an attack on his work Christmas party in San Bernardino, California, before going on a rampage with wife Tashfeen Malik (pictured together)
Last month saw the effective end of their 'caliphate' with the capture of Raqqa and Dier Ezzor - the last two strongholds in Syria - following the capture of Mosul in Iraq.
On October 31 Sayfullo Saipov drove a rented truck down a bike path in New York, killing eight and leaving dozens more wounded.
Christmas has also proved a popular time for ISIS attacks in the past, with Anis Amri driving a truck into a Berlin festival market on December 15 last year.
In 2015 Rizwan Farook began his terror attack in San Barnardino, California, at a work Christmas party before going on a rampage with wife Tashfeen Malik, which ended with them both shot dead.
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