Maybe this is why I don't have a huge amount of compassion for "resistance" scum being shot in the face and treated like the dogs they are?

http://www.cnn.com/2004/WORLD/meast/...san/index.html

Iraq charity worker feared killed
Tuesday, November 16, 2004 Posted: 3:02 PM EST (2002 GMT)



Hassan is seen in this January 2003 photo taken in New York.


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(CNN) -- The director of CARE International in Iraq, who was kidnapped last month, has apparently been killed, the humanitarian organization says.

"It is with profound sadness that we have learnt of the existence of a video in which it appears that our colleague Margaret Hassan has been killed," a CARE spokesman said in a written statement Tuesday.

"We are shocked and appalled that this has been the apparent outcome of her abduction."

A British Foreign Office official said: "There is a video ... We believe it is probably genuine, but we cannot be certain at this time."

Hassan, who was in her 60s, held dual British-Iraqi citizenships.

British Foreign Secretary Jack Straw said: "Our experts have been examining a video which appeared to show that Margaret Hassan has been murdered, to establish whether it is genuine.

"As a result of our analysis, we have today had to inform Margaret Hassan's family that, sadly, we now believe that she has probably been murdered, although we cannot conclude this with complete certainty."

His written statement continued: "I want to express my deepest sympathy and condolences to Margaret's family. They have been through a month of the most terrible uncertainty and torment.

"To kidnap and kill anyone is inexcusable. But it is repugnant to commit such a crime against a woman who has spent most of her life working for the good of the people of Iraq."

Arab network Al-Jazeera reported "Al-Jazeera has obtained a video showing a masked militant shooting a blindfolded woman, who was referred to as Margaret Hassan, in the head using a handgun. Al-Jazeera decided to wait on reporting the news until it confirmed the authenticity of the tape."

Al-Jazeera showed no video and did not say whether it would show any of the video it at a later time.

Hassan was a highly respected humanitarian official in the Middle East.

Shortly after her abduction, patients at a Baghdad hospital took to the streets to protest the kidnapping. They credited her with helping to rebuild the medical facility last year.

Hassan's family she had devoted her life to caring for the poor and vulnerable.

They said in a written statement: "Our hearts are broken. We have kept hoping for as long as we could, but we now have to accept that Margaret has probably gone and at last her suffering has ended." (Full statement)

A spokesman for UK Prime Minister Tony Blair said: "The prime minister sends his sympathy to the family of Margaret Hassan and shares their abhorrence at the cruel treatment of someone who devoted so many years of their life to helping the people of Iraq."

In its statement, CARE said it was profoundly saddened by Hassan's apparent death.

"We are shocked and appalled that this has been the apparent outcome of her abduction. We want to express our deepest sympathy to Mrs. Hassan's husband, Tahseen, and to her family. Mrs. Hassan was an extraordinary woman who dedicated her life to the poor and disadvantaged in Iraq, particularly the children. The whole of CARE is in mourning.

"Through her courage, tenacity and commitment, Mrs. Hassan assisted more than 17 million Iraqis living in the most difficult of circumstances. Everyone who met her was touched by her personality and compassion."

CARE pulled its staff out of Iraq October 20 after deciding it had become too dangerous to remain in the country.

Hassan was born in Ireland and had lived in Iraq for 30 years.

She was kidnapped October 19 by a group that did not identify itself. The group said November 2 that it would turn Hassan over to an al Qaeda-affiliated group -- Base of Jihad -- if the British government did not pull its troops out of Iraq within 48 hours, the Arab TV network Al-Jazeera said.

Base of Jihad has been blamed for numerous beheadings of foreigners in Iraq, including the slayings of Americans Nicholas Berg, Eugene Armstrong and Jack Hensley, and Briton Kenneth Bigley. They also claimed responsibility for the killing of a Japanese hostage.

Early this month, Hassan's three sisters met with Irish Prime Minister Bertie Ahern and appealed to her captors for her release. Relatives also begged British Prime Minister Tony Blair and the British government to meet the kidnappers' demands.

But one of her sisters, Deirdre Fitzsimons, said: "We are Irish, and we have no influence on the British government."

Hassan appeared in two videos, aired by Al-Jazeera in October, pleading for her life. In one, on October 27, she urges Britons to pressure Blair to withdraw troops from the country.

Hassan also called for the release of all female prisoners in Iraq and urged CARE's board of directors to end operations in Iraq, an action they already had taken.

Hassan's pleas are not heard in the tape, but an anchor for Al-Jazeera described the contents of her message. Five days earlier, a videotape of Hassan shows her tearfully urging Blair to pull troops from Iraq.

Hassan was kidnapped on the street shortly after she arrived at her office. Her abductors never explained why she was targeted.