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David Haines beheading: Isis militant murders British hostage as David Cameron condemns 'act of pure evil' David Haines beheading video: Footage shows Isis militant murdering aid worker with threat to kill second British hostage
(about 1 hour later)
The Islamic State (Isis) has released a video showing the beheading of the British hostage and aid worker David Haines.The Islamic State (Isis) has released a video showing the beheading of the British hostage and aid worker David Haines.
The Prime Minister David Cameron described his killing as an "act of pure evil". He has returned to No 10 and will chair a meeting of the Government's emergency Cobra committee this morning The video shows Mr Haines, who was captured by militants in Syria in 2013, wearing an orange jumpsuit and kneeling in the desert while he reads a pre-prepared script. It later shows what appears to be the aid worker's body.
Mr Cameron said in a statement in the hours after the video was released: "The murder of David Haines is an act of pure evil. My heart goes out to his family who have shown extraordinary courage and fortitude throughout this ordeal.  The Foreign Office has released a statement saying that "all the signs are that the video is genuine". Like with previous Isis murder videos showing the beheading of US journalists James Foley and Steven Sotloff, it ends with a threat to kill another hostage - a second British national.
He added: "We will do everything in our power to hunt down these murderers and ensure they face justice, however long it takes." The emergence of the footage late on Saturday night saw David Cameron return to Downing Street after midnight. He is set to chair a meeting of the Government's emergency committee Cobra this morning.
The Foreign Office said on Sunday morning that "all signs" point towards the video's authenticity. Condemning the killing, the Prime Minister said in a statement: "The murder of David Haines is an act of pure evil. My heart goes out to his family who have shown extraordinary courage and fortitude throughout this ordeal.
The film, entitled “A Message To The Allies of America”, shows a man in an orange jumpsuit kneeling in the desert and reading from what appears to be a prepared script. "We will do everything in our power to hunt down these murderers and ensure they face justice, however long it takes," he said.
Speaking to the camera, the Briton says: "My name is David Cawthorne Haines. I would like to declare that I hold you David Cameron entirely responsible for my execution. In the video, an Isis fighter mentions the bombing of the Haditha Dam by the US, an incident that only occurred in the past week, showing that the killing was carried out very recently. He also addresses Mr Cameron directly, saying the Prime Minister will "pay the price for [his] promise to arm the Peshmerga (Kurdish military) against the Islamic State".
"You entered voluntarily into a coalition with the United States against the Islamic State, just as your predecessor Tony Blair did, following a trend amongst our British Prime Minsters who can't find the courage to say no to the Americans.  In his own speech, which seems to have been made under duress, the hostage says: "My name is David Cawthorne Haines. I would like to declare that I hold you, David Cameron, entirely responsible for my execution.
"You entered voluntarily into a coalition with the United States against the Islamic State, just as your predecessor Tony Blair did, following a trend amongst our British Prime Minsters who can't find the courage to say no to the Americans.
"Unfortunately it is we the British public that in the end will pay the price for our Parliament's selfish decisions.""Unfortunately it is we the British public that in the end will pay the price for our Parliament's selfish decisions."
The Islamic State militant then addresses the camera and says: "This British man has to the pay the price for your promise, Cameron, to arm the Peshmerga against the Islamic State. The US President, Barack Obama, has led a host of international leaders in condemning the latest high-profile murder by Isis.
"Ironically he has spent a decade of his life serving under the same Royal Air Force that is responsible for delivering those arms. A still from the video purporting to show David Haines Mr Obama, who was himself addressed in the videos showing the deaths of Mr Foley and Mr Sotloff, has recently a battle plan to bring increased military action against Isis in Syria.
"Your evil alliance with America which continues to strike the Muslims of Iraq and most recently bombed the Haditha Dam will only accelerate your destruction, and playing the role of the obedient lapdog, Cameron, will only drag you and your people into another bloody and unwinnable war.'" In a statement, he said: "The United States strongly condemns the barbaric murder of UK citizen David Haines by the terrorist group Isil (Isis).
The footage then showed what is believed to be the body of Mr Haines. "Our hearts go out to the family of Mr Haines and to the people of the United Kingdom. The United States stands shoulder to shoulder tonight with our close friend and ally in grief and resolve.
The video, which runs to two minutes and 28 seconds, ends with a warning that a second British hostage would be the next to die. Barack Obama vows to target the Islamic State with air strikes 'wherever they exist' Mr Obama also reiterated his support for the creation of a "coalition of nations" to deal with Isis, which he said would "bring the perpetrators of this outrageous act to justice".
Mike Haines, the brother of David Haines, 44, said in a statement that his brother had been murdered in cold blood. Tony Abbott, the Australian prime minister, said on Sunday that his country would also be scaling up its military effort against Isis, contributing a further 600 troops and up to 10 military aircraft.
He said: “David was like so very many of us, just another bloke. David was most alive and enthusiastic in his humanitarian roles. His joy and anticipation for the work he went to do in Syria is for myself and family the most important element of this whole sad affair. In a statement, Mr Abbott said Mr Haines's killing was "further demonstration that this particular terrorist group does not just do evil, but exalts in doing evil".
“He was and is loved by all his family and will be missed terribly.” The US journalist James Foley, who was murdered in a previous beheading video by Isis In Britain the murder was condemned by the Labour leader Ed Miliband and the Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg, while First Minister Alex Salmond has called a meeting of the Scottish equivalent to Cobra.
Mr Haines, a father of two, was abducted while working for a non-governmental organisation in Syria in March 2013. Mr Haines grew up in Perth, Scotland. A 44-year-old father of two, he worked for the Royal Mail and then the Royal Air Force as an aircraft engineer.
Labour leader Ed Miliband said: "I am sickened at the disgusting, barbaric killing of David Haines. He worked for aid agencies in some of the world's harshest combat zones in recent years, including Libya during the 2011 civil war. He was taken hostage while working for the agency ACTED in March 2013, as he worked to bring aid to the Syrian people.
"He was somebody whose only purpose was to help innocent people, themselves victims of conflict." A frame from video released by Isis showing American freelance journalist Steven Sotloff shortly before his killing Mike Haines, David's brother, said in a statement that the aid worker had been murdered in cold blood.
Mr Miliband continued: "My deepest condolences and thoughts are with his family as they cope with this terrible crime. And the hearts of the British people will go out to them." He said: "David was like so very many of us, just another bloke. David was most alive and enthusiastic in his humanitarian roles. His joy and anticipation for the work he went to do in Syria is for myself and family the most important element of this whole sad affair.
Isis have captured large swathes of Iraq and Syria and have urged Muslims from around the world to join them. "He was and is loved by all his family and will be missed terribly."
A father of two daughters, Mr Haines lived in Croatia before his kidnapping. He had previously worked in some of the world’s most dangerous regions, in his role as an aid worker, including Libya and South Sudan.
The video was released after a day in which Mr Haines’s family had made a attempt to contact his captors – although a statement released by the Foreign Office  said that their requests for talks had been ignored. Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond had said the government was doing “everything” it could to protect him.
Mr Foley’s death was reported a month ago when Isis released its first “Message To America” video on the internet. Two weeks later Mr Sotloff was beheaded in a similar film. At the end of that second video, Mr Haines was shown in an orange jumpsuit and threatened with death.