The Islamic State group released a video Saturday of the third beheading
of a foreign hostage, a British aid worker, according to SITE
Intelligence, which tracks the jihadist groups. The killing was a clear
message to Britain, a key ally of the United States as it builds an
international coalition to target the militant group, which has made
stunning advances across Syria and northern Iraq in recent months.
The video shows the aid worker, David Cawthorne Haines, kneeling on a bare hill under the open sky, in a landscape that appears identical to where two American journalists were killed by the group in back-to-back-executions in the past month. In the moments before his death, the 44-year-old Haines is forced to read a script, in which he blames his country's leaders for his killing.
"I would like to declare that I hold you, David Cameron, entirely responsible for my execution," he said, referring to Britain's prime minister, David Cameron. "You entered voluntarily into a coalition with the United States against the Islamic State. Unfortunately, it is we the British public that in the end will pay the price for our Parliament's selfish decisions."
The video ends with the black-clad executioner identifying their next victim as Alan Henning, another British citizen.
The beheading of Haines puts pressure on Cameron's government, a member of a core coalition of nations announced as NATO leaders met in Wales this month and sought to devise a strategy to address the growing threat from the Islamic State, including plans to strengthen allies on the ground in Iraq and Syria and conduct airstrikes against the militants.
Britain and the United States are among the only nations in the world that have held to a hard-line, no-concessions policy when dealing with kidnappings by terrorist groups.
Until this year, the Islamic State was holding close to two dozen foreigners in the same jail where Haines was imprisoned on the outskirts of the Syrian town of Raqqa. His European cellmates were released for ransom, one after another, according to one of the hostages held alongside him who was recently freed after his government paid a ransom. Haines, who had a military background, was kidnapped 19 months ago in northern Syria and was held alongside an Italian co-worker, Frederico Motka.
Tagged Under : Beheading, British worker, David Cameron Beheaded, Video Shows British Hostage David Cameron Haines, David Haines, James Folay, BITE Intelligence, Steven.J Sotloff,
The video shows the aid worker, David Cawthorne Haines, kneeling on a bare hill under the open sky, in a landscape that appears identical to where two American journalists were killed by the group in back-to-back-executions in the past month. In the moments before his death, the 44-year-old Haines is forced to read a script, in which he blames his country's leaders for his killing.
"I would like to declare that I hold you, David Cameron, entirely responsible for my execution," he said, referring to Britain's prime minister, David Cameron. "You entered voluntarily into a coalition with the United States against the Islamic State. Unfortunately, it is we the British public that in the end will pay the price for our Parliament's selfish decisions."
The video ends with the black-clad executioner identifying their next victim as Alan Henning, another British citizen.
The beheading of Haines puts pressure on Cameron's government, a member of a core coalition of nations announced as NATO leaders met in Wales this month and sought to devise a strategy to address the growing threat from the Islamic State, including plans to strengthen allies on the ground in Iraq and Syria and conduct airstrikes against the militants.
Britain and the United States are among the only nations in the world that have held to a hard-line, no-concessions policy when dealing with kidnappings by terrorist groups.
Until this year, the Islamic State was holding close to two dozen foreigners in the same jail where Haines was imprisoned on the outskirts of the Syrian town of Raqqa. His European cellmates were released for ransom, one after another, according to one of the hostages held alongside him who was recently freed after his government paid a ransom. Haines, who had a military background, was kidnapped 19 months ago in northern Syria and was held alongside an Italian co-worker, Frederico Motka.
Tagged Under : Beheading, British worker, David Cameron Beheaded, Video Shows British Hostage David Cameron Haines, David Haines, James Folay, BITE Intelligence, Steven.J Sotloff,
