British Hostage beheaded

Actually this was new news yesterday but I never blogged about it for some reason, even as just a note that it happened. Kenneth Bigley outlived his American counterparts, thats for sure, but in the end he sadly met the same fate as them at the hands of Zarqawi's Tawhid and Jihad.

Initially there was a scant mention that he may have been killed after trying to escape, and that several others were killed for trying to aid in his escape. There is "credible information that he tried to escape with the aid of one of his captors" [MSNBC].

Throughout the whole ordeal, the British government refused to try and save his life. While everyone else in Britain and elsewhere were pleading and praying for his release (but since when did pleading and especially praying ever bring about a desired result?). But the most noteworthy bit, which my friend Allison pointed out to me, was how he is the only hostage that they have ever shown caged up.

Presumably he had tried to escape before perhaps, prompting them to put him in a cage?

*Edited out*

This reminds me a bit of an article I saw on MSNBC a week or two ago and printed out. It makes mention to the possible purpose of such beheadings:

Several Arabs, however, said the United States and its allies were ultimately to blame for the hostage-taking because of the occupation and offensives that kill scores of Iraqis.

"It’s savage revenge rather than execution," said Jordanian political analyst Adnan Abu Odeh. "While there are those who are disgusted, a certain percentage no doubt feel vindicated because of the killings they see by the Americans in Iraq."

...

Zerrouk Slimani, a Tunisian school teacher, said nobody should regret the killing of Westerners. "When dozens of Palestinians are dead or 50 killed in Iraq, few in the West condemn these assassinations," he explained.