In the face of evil BETHANY Haines has been resolute in her search for answers about her dad’s murder by Isis terrorists.
Bethany tells of David’s plea to Islamic State murderers
Her fortitude would have been stretched to the limit when she came face-to-face with Alexanda Kotey.
Scottish aid worker David was murdered by an Isis terror cell known as “The Beatles” and Bethany spent two hours with Kotey, who admitted stalking, abducting and murdering him.
She learned of his last moments and his plea to make his death quick.
It gave her an insight into the barbarity of his killers, who prolonged his torture to get the right angle for their video.
David’s family have maintained an unwavering dignity since his death and have been determined to seek whatever justice has been open to them.
Bethany asked Kotey for an apology but he did not have the humanity to show remorse with any grace.
It was clear there was no sincerity when he eventually said he was sorry.
Bethany meeting Kotey must have been so hard but we can only hope it will somehow help her in the face of overwhelming grief.
THE daughter of a Scots aid worker murdered by Islamic State terrorists known as “the Beatles” has learned of her dad’s final plea to his captors before being put to death.
Bethany Haines said that her father David had apparently asked ringleader Mohammed Emwazi, known as Jihadi John, to “make it quick” when he was led away to be murdered in 2014. said her dad’s final wish was recalled to her in a two-hour meeting with Londoner Alexanda Kotey in Virginia, US, where he was jailed in April for his part in the torture and murder of western hostages.
Bethany told ITV news: “He (Kotey) told me that Jihadi John had been away to execute my father and my father knew what was coming, closed his eyes, and said: ‘Can you make it quick?’
“I can picture him saying that, in his orange jumpsuit, with his eyes closed. I can picture him saying: ‘Please make it quick.’”
David’s remains have never been discovered.
Bethany said Kotey told her that he had been following her father for a couple of days before abducting him, and apologised to her for his role in the murder.
Bethany said: “I asked for an apology. I pressed on with it and eventually he did say ‘I am sorry for’ – he just used my words for it – ‘abducting and hurting your dad’. “Did he mean it? No.” Bethany said Kotey also revealed that her father’s death was delayed to give his killers time to film from different angles for their gruesome propaganda video which sent shockwaves around the world. David, from Perth, was captured by militants in Syria in March 2013 while delivering aid to the war-torn country.
Kotey was handed a life sentence for his part in the plot to kill American hostages. He may yet be brought back to the UK to be charged with the deaths of other hostages, including David.
Kotey’s codefendant, El Shafee Elsheikh, will be sentenced in August for his role in the plot.
Jihadi John was killed in a drone strike in 2015, while Aine Davis was jailed in Turkey in 2017.
The terror cell was dubbed the Beatles due to the four core members’ English accents.
Eventually he did say sorry. Did he mean it? No BETHANY HAINES ON MEETING WITH TERRORIST