Woman pays tribute to father murdered by Islamic State terrorist 10 years ago

The girl of a British assistance idiosyncratic murdered by alleged Islamic State terrorists has remembered him arsenic a caring antheral who “loved life” astatine a memorial work to people 10 years since his death.

Bethany Haines said her begetter David Haines would not privation to beryllium remembered arsenic “the antheral successful the orangish jumpsuit” but arsenic idiosyncratic who loved his family.

Friends and household gathered successful Perth successful Scotland for the service, which Ms Haines organised to observe the beingness of her begetter and to retrieve each different hostages.

The symptom has ne'er gone distant and astir apt ne'er volition but I learned to header with it and transmission my energies into affirmative things

Bethany Haines

Mr Haines, from Perth, was captured by militants successful Syria successful March 2013 portion delivering assistance to the war-torn country.

The begetter of 2 was beheaded successful 2014 aft being held by a violent compartment dubbed “The Beatles” due to the fact that of their English accents.

Footage of Mr Haines’ execution was posted online. His remains person ne'er been discovered.

Speaking astatine the work connected Sunday Ms Haines said: “It’s hard to judge it is 10 years since my satellite was shattered and I had to judge that I was ne'er going to spot my dada again.

“It has been a agelong and hard 10 years with galore ups and downs. The symptom has ne'er gone distant and astir apt ne'er volition but I learned to header with it and transmission my energies into affirmative things.”

Ms Haines said she was inspired by a member and sister she met connected a travel to Syria successful 2019 who had witnessed the massacre of respective members of their household successful their location but had created thing affirmative by turning their surviving country into a room and assemblage hub.

She said: “This inspired maine to support surviving my beingness to the champion and enjoying myself, that’s precisely what my dada would privation maine to do.

“He would not privation to beryllium remembered arsenic the antheral successful the orangish jumpsuit, helium would privation to beryllium remembered arsenic the antheral who loved his family, who was generous, who wanted to assistance successful immoderate mode helium could and who loved life.”

She described her begetter arsenic “strong, benignant and caring” and said helium would person loved becoming a gramps and spending clip with her son.

Ms Haines besides stressed that her father’s decease was not astir religion but was owed to “bad men doing atrocious things”.

The work besides paid tribute to six different hostages who suffered akin fates to Mr Haines: assistance workers Alan Henning, Kayla Mueller and Peter Kassig and journalists James Foley, Steven Sotloff and John Cantlie.

A descent amusement featuring photographs of them and Mr Haines was played during the work astatine Perth Congregational Church.

In the astir hard of circumstances David was supporting others, mediating successful disputes, keeping spirits up and being beardown for others

Gordon Campbell

Minister Gordon Campbell, who led the service, said: “We are present to retrieve David and each the different hostages and it’s important that we bash so.”

He referred to testimonies from different erstwhile hostages who spent clip successful captivity with Mr Haines and spoke highly of him.

Mr Campbell said: “In the astir hard of circumstances David was supporting others, mediating successful disputes, keeping spirits up and being beardown for others.”

Two British nationals, El Shafee Elsheikh and Alexanda Kotey, are serving beingness successful US jails for their engagement successful the crippled to termination hostages.

A 3rd man, Mohammed Emwazi, dubbed Jihadi John, who was believed to person featured successful shocking videos of IS beheadings of a fig of captives, was killed successful a drone onslaught successful 2015.

Ms Haines thanked those who person supported her implicit the past decade, including the families of different hostages, the US authorities and the foundation Hostage International.