ISIS Hostage's Family Pleads For His Release

The family of British aid worker and ISIS hostage Alan Henning have received an audio file of Henning pleading for his life, Henning's wife Barbara said in an emotional statement Tuesday. Earlier Tuesday, Henning's brother-in-law Colin Livesey said he feared that the expanded U.S. airstrikes in Syria would provoke ISIS, believed to be holding the captured volunteer, to move Henning and conceal his location once again.

The U.S. launched a nighttime airstrike campaign on Monday, including around Raqqa, where Henning is believed to be held. On Tuesday, Barbara Henning released this statement directed at her husband's captors:

I am Barbara Henning, the wife of Alan Henning. I have a further message for Islamic State.

An audio file of Alan pleading for his life has just been received by me. I and people representing me continue to reach out to those holding Alan. Islamic State continue to ignore our pleas to open dialogue.

I have seen Muslims across the globe question Islamic State over Alan’s fate. The voices of the people have spoken out loud and clear. He was working with Muslims to help the most vulnerable within Syria. Nothing has changed. He went to Syria to help his Muslim friends deliver much needed aid.

We are at a loss why those leading Islamic State cannot open their hearts and minds to the facts surrounding Alan’s imprisonment and why they continue to threaten his life.

I have been told that he has been to a Sharia Court and found innocent of being a spy and declared to be no threat. I implore Islamic State to abide by the decisions of their own justice system.

Please release Alan.

Thus far, cries from family members seem to have fallen on deaf ears. James Foley, Steven Sotloff, and Haines' families all issued heartbreaking statements directed to ISIS begging for mercy, and each of ISIS' hostages was brutally executed on-camera by the terrorist group.

During the video of the execution of fellow Briton David Haines, which was released by ISIS last week, Alan Henning was threatened as the militant group's next victim. Henning was taken prisoner the day after Christmas back in 2012; the former taxi driver was on his fourth trip to Syria when he was abducted.