British aid worker is latest ISIS victim

ISIS claims to have beheaded another hostage in a video released online today.

The hostage, Briton Alan Henning, went missing in Syria nine months ago. The Islamic militants holding him, sometimes referred to as Islamic State, warned three weeks ago he would be the next to die.

According to British newspaper The Guardian, Henning, 47, was a taxi driver from Eccles, Greater Manchester. He joined an aid convoy to Syria after he raised money to purchase ambulances and medical equipment being taken into the conflict zone. In the last six months, ISIS militants have taken over large swaths of Iraq and Syria in a bid to establish an Islamic caliphate. Henning was taken from a warehouse near the Turkish border. Other aid volunteers who were left unharmed, said the militant fighters claimed they were suspicious of Henning because he wasn’t Muslim.

ISIS has killed three other Westerners in gruesome beheadings in the last month. The murders have been filmed and posted on social media as retaliation for Western airstrikes against militant positions, mostly in Iraq. Earlier this week, the United States began hitting targets in Syria as well. American journalists James Foley and Steven Sotloff were killed Aug. 19 and Sept. 2. Scottish aid worker David Haines was killed Sept. 13.

In each beheading video, the militants previewed their next victim, warning of his impending death should the West not halt its bombing campaign. This week, the UK joined America, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates in launching airstrikes against ISIS positions.

In another video, released Sept. 18, British journalist John Cantlie delivered a critical rant, likely under duress, about Britain’s policy against paying ransoms for hostages. The United States also refuses to pay for a prisoner’s release.

U.S. and British officials are trying to confirm the authenticity of the video showing Henning.