Horrifying video shows French tourist executed by ISIS-linked group in Algeria
By RYAN GORMAN
An ISIS-offshoot based in Algeria has executed a French hostage after previously threatening to kill him over France's participation in airstrikes over Iraq.
Herve Gourdel, 55, was captured Sunday by Jund al-Khilafa while on vacation. The horrifying video ends with one of the insurgents holding his head over his body as another stands on it waving to the camera while they all praise Allah.
Gourdel was captured only one day after landing in Algeria, according to reports. The video was first found by the SITEintelligence, a terrorist watchdog group based in the U.S.
His final taped plea for help was released Tuesday by the terror group, and it caused about 1,500 soldiers to comb the region looking for him. The terrorists said he would be dead in one day if the bombings did not end.
Titled "A Message in Blood for the French Government," the latest in a series of westerner beheading videos from Middle Eastern terrorists starts with footage of military aircraft in the region.
It then cuts to a previous speech by French President Francois Hollande where he discusses air strikes on ISIS targets.
The video then shows Gourdel kneeling in front of four terrorists brandishing Kalashinikov rifles while wearing a grey sweater with a blue pyramid. His hair is disheveled and his hands are tied behind his back.
He faces the camera and grimly addresses Hollande and his parents before the audio cuts to a statement read by one of the terrorists.
The location is shrouded with sheets and appears to be in a forest, as three of the four mujahedeen are wearing woods camouflage fatigues and birds can be heard singing nearby.
The quartet then takes Gourdel, lays him on his side and takes a knife to his neck as the video cuts out. It then returns to show a similar scene to other beheading videos: Gourdel's head is shown resting in his lap.
Terrorists then end the video with one holding the severed head over Gourdet's lifeless torso as another insurgent stands on him and they all praise Allah.
U.S.-led coalition airstrikes against the Islamic State are expected to continue "for the long-haul," a United Arab Emirates official told CNN Tuesday.
Related links:
US military releases raw footage of Islamic State strikes
US officials: Terrorist group was nearing attack
The evolution of President Obama's response to ISIS
