Cameron vows to 'hunt down' murderers of Alan Henning
On Friday British Prime Minister David Cameron confirmed the "brutal murder" of British aid worker Alan Henning by the militant group calling itself the “Islamic State” (IS) and he vowed to bring the killers to justice.
"The brutal murder of Alan Henning by ISIL (the former name for IS) shows just how barbaric and repulsive these terrorists are," Cameron said in a statement released by his Downing Street office.
"We will do all we can to hunt down these murderers and bring them to justice."
On Saturday morning, Cameron sent out this tweet:
The news of Henning's murder had emerged late on Friday as IS released a video which recorded his final moments.
The recording is almost identical to the videos released after three other IS hostages were murdered. It showed Henning on his knees against a desert backdrop and wearing an orange prison-style outfit, with a masked militant standing over him wielding a combat knife before the video cuts to his beheading.
Before Henning was killed he speaks directly to the camera, and explains that, as a member of the British public, he is being made to pay the price for the parliamentary vote.
The masked man standing over Henning, who is believed to have the same British accent as the killer in a previous IS video of the death of British hostage David Haines, directly addresses Cameron.
"The blood of David Haines was on your hands, Cameron. Alan Henning will also be slaughtered, but his blood is on the hands of the British parliament," he declares, then cuts the hostage's throat.
Henning, a 47-year-old from Manchester in northwest England was a taxi driver who volunteered to help drive an ambulance as part of a volunteer aid convoy to Syria for Muslim charity Aid4Syria.
He even had Aid4Syria tattooed on his arm, a measure of his commitment to a cause he had come to love.
Henning was kidnapped in December last year, 10 months ago, just after the aid convoy entered Syria.
Henning was a married father of two, and last week his wife issued an emotional video appeal to his kidnappers pleading for his release, but to no avail.
Reacting to the news, Cameron said the fact Henning was captured and killed while trying to help others "demonstrates that there are no limits to the depravity of these ISIL terrorists."
He added that his "thoughts and prayers" were with Henning's wife Barbara, their children and friends.
The killing was also condemned by the Muslim Council of Britain, the country's biggest Muslim umbrella organisation.
Secretary general Shuja Shafi said it was a "despicable and offensive" act.
"Alan was a friend of Muslims, and he will be mourned by Muslims," he added.
"In this period of Hajj and this festival of Eid, Muslims remember the mercy of God and the emphasis God places on human life.
"Alan Henning's murderers have clearly gone against that spirit of Islam."
Threats to life of American, Pater Kassig
At the end of the video in which Henning spoke his last words, a masked IS militant also threatens a hostage he identifies as an American, Peter Kassig. Kassig, who is still alive at the end of the one-minute 11-second video, is a former US Army soldier who served in Iraq then returned to the Middle East to found a relief organization.
International Condemnation
Yesterday and overnight international condemnation of his murder and condolences for his family have been pouring in.
Among the world leaders to voice their outrage was French President Francois Hollande, who on Friday, pledged to help bring the perpetrators to justice.
Hollande "is outraged by the heinous crime carried out by the terrorist group Daesh (the Arabic acronym for IS) which has murdered Alan Henning, a humanitarian volunteer", said a statement issued by the French presidency." This crime, like previous ones, will not be unpunished.
"France will continue to lend support to the people and the authorities of Iraq in their fight against terrorism," added the statement in which Hollande also sent his condolences to Henning's family.
Social media reaction to the murder of Henning
Many expressed their grief over Hennings murder:
Others expressed their anger:
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