An American hostage being held by al-Qaida has asked President Obama in a video released on Sunday to agree to the terrorist group’s demands in order to save his life, the Associated Press reported.
Warren Weinstein, a 70-year-old country director for J.E. Austin Associates, a Virginia-based firm advising the Pakistani government, was abducted last August from his home in Lahore, Pakistan. The terrorist group has demanded that the U.S. discontinue air strikes in Afghanistan, Pakistan, Somalia and Yemen, or Weinstein will be killed, the AP reported.
“My life is in your hands, Mr. President,” said Weinstein, of Rockville, Md., in the video, according to the AP. “If you accept the demands, I live; if you don’t accept the demands, then I die.”
In the video, Weinstein reportedly appeals to the president as a father, asking to rejoin his two daughters. He pleads to the president not to delay, the AP reported.
“It’s important you accept the demands and act quickly and don’t delay," Weinstein said in the video. “They'll be no benefit in delaying; it will just make things more difficult for me.”
The video was posted on jihadist forums on Sunday, the AP reported.
Get the latest news and analysis delivered to your inbox. Sign up for National Journal's morning alert, Wake-Up Call, and afternoon newsletter, The Edge. Subscribe here.
Leave A Comment