In a chilling new video, Canadian and Norwegian hostages say they will be executed in less than one month if a $16-million ransom is not paid to Abu Sayyaf, their Filipino captors who beheaded another Canadian after a previous deadline was not met.
“My name is Robert Hall. I am told to tell you that on June the 13th at 3 pm I will be murdered if the demands are not met,” the gaunt, long-haired Canadian says, only briefly looking at the camera, in the latest video released by the group and published by Site Intelligence Group on Sunday. “I appeal to my government, the Philippine government, as I have appealed before for help,” he said.
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Screen shot of latest ransom demand video by Abu Sayyaf. Robert Hall pictured.
The camera then pans to Norwegian Kjartan Sekkingstad, who like Hall is dressed in orange coveralls. He makes the same appeal to Canadian, Norwegian and Filipino authorities.
“Anybody who can possibly help us, if the group’s demands are not met by June 13, we will be executed at 3 pm on that exact date, one month from now,” says Sekkingstad.
Text accompanying the video adds that Abu Sayyaf, which has pledged allegiance to the Islamic State, “will behead another foreign hostage on June 13 (Monday) at exactly 3 pm” if its monetary demand is not met.
Related: Beheaded Hostage Triggers Debate Over Whether Governments Should Pay Ransoms
Hall, Sekkingstad, and Hall’s girlfriend Maritess Flor were kidnapped in September from the marina of resort near alongside John Ridsdel, a Canadian who was executed about three weeks ago. According to multiple reports, Ridsdel was beheaded. Flor does not appear in the latest video.
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau condemned “without reservation the brutality of the hostage takers” following Ridsdel’s death, calling it “an act of cold-blooded murder and responsibility rests squarely with the terrorist group who took him hostage.”
He followed that up the next day by declaring that “Canada does not and will not pay ransom to terrorists, directly or indirectly,” saying that to do so would endanger the lives of all Canadians living and traveling abroad.
In a statement, Canada’s foreign affairs department said it was aware of the latest video.
“The Government’s first priority is the safety and security of its citizens and therefore we will not comment or release any information which may compromise ongoing efforts or endanger the safety of the remaining hostages,” Rachna Mishra, a spokesperson for Global Affairs Canada, said in an email.
The latest video includes an appeal by the masked jihadists themselves, who according to the National Post urge the Canadian and Philippine government “not to play games for we are determined to slaughter all the captives if you do not comply with our demands. We are not scared of you or your soldiers or airplanes.” The group chants “Allahu Akbar”, which means God is great in Arabic, as one man lifts a machete in the air.
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