Before they were decapitated by Islamist militants, U.S. journalists
Steven Sotloff and James Foley both stared at the camera and condemned
America. Many have wondered why they did it considering they knew they
won't be spared anyway.Some said they will rather die fighting than give
up and read speeches prepared by the islamists.
One Australian Warren Rodwell, a 56-year-old Brisbane man who spent 472
days held captive by Filipino militant group Abu Sayyaf, an al-Qaeda
militant group has opened up on what it feels like .He said
Whatever someone wants, you give it to them,' You just do what you're told.'
'Nothing really has meaning to you anymore. Someone tells you "say this"
and you say it.You just imagine whoever is watching it is smart enough
to realise you haven't really got your heart in it.Once you lose hope
you lose heart.'
Psychologists said Mr Foley and Mr Sotloff would have lost all sense of normality while in isolation.
Dr Chris Lennings, a forensic psychologist with more than 30 years experience, said:
'It's unimaginable to me, the amount of psychological pressure that
would have been placed on them... particularly given the softening up
process that would have taken place.' There would have been beatings,
threats, sensory deprivation, all sorts of things would have been done
to remove any sense of normality, any standard parameters by which they
can judge their behaviour. These people are being placed in an
intolerable situation,'. 'They're just entirely dependent on what their
captors decide to do.'
Terrorism expert Professor Greg Barton,said the execution videos were a recruitment tool.
'The primary purpose of these videos is to bolster their efforts at
recruiting fighters in western democracies,Around 5000 fighters from
Europe, the U.K., the U.S. and Australia have joined the Islamic State
in Syria and Iraq.These latest videos show the West appearing weak and
Islamist fighters looking strong to encourage vulnerable potential
Western recruits to join the Islamic State cause. One of IS's major aims
is this idea of restoring the dignity to Muslims and the Muslim
community.Making themselves look strong and making the West look weak
feeds into that propaganda.
James Foley who was first killed said
I call on my friends, family and loved ones to rise up against my real
killers, the US government.For what will happen to me is only a result
of their complacency and criminality.My message to my beloved parents:
save me some dignity and don’t accept any meagre compensation for my
death, from the same people who effectively hit the last nail in my
coffin with a recent aerial campaign in Iraq.'I call on my brother John,
who is a member of the US Air Force, think about what you are doing,
think about lives you destroy including those of your own family.I call
on you John, think about who made the decision to bomb Iraq recently and
kill those people, whoever they may have been.
Steve Joel who was the latest to be killed said..
I am Steven Joel Sotloff. I’m sure you know exactly who I am by now and
why I am appearing before you. And now this is the time for my message:
'Obama, your foreign policy of intervention in Iraq was supposed to be
the preservation of American lives and interests, so why is that I am
paying the price of your interference with my life? Am I not an American
citizen? We’ve spent billions of U.S. taxpayer dollars and we’ve lost
thousands of our troops in our previous fighting against the Islamic
State, so what are the people’s interests in reigniting war?
'From what little I know about foreign policy, I remember a time when
you could not win an election without promising to bring our troops back
from Iraq and Afghanistan and to close down Guantanamo. Here you are
now, Obama, nearing the end of your term, and having achieved none of
the above and deceivingly marching us the American people in the blazing
fire.
Source: Mailonline..
We appreciate you for reading On baze360, but we think it will be better you like our facebook fanpage and also follow us on twitter below.
Title :
ISIS Killings-Former Captive explains why US Journalists read forced speeches on the brink of death
Description : Before they were decapitated by Islamist militants, U.S. journalists Steven Sotloff and James Foley both stared at the camera and conde...
Rating :
5