NationMaster - Encyclopedia: Kenneth Bigley

Kenneth John Bigley (1942 – October 7, 2004), was a civil engineer from Liverpool, England, who was kidnapped in the al-Mansour district of Baghdad, Iraq on September 16, 2004, along with Jack Hensley and Eugene Armstrong, both U.S. citizens. The three men were civil engineers working for Gulf Supplies and Commercial Services, a company working on reconstruction projects in Iraq. All were subsequently beheaded. Image File history File links This work is copyrighted. ... is the 280th day of the year (281st in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2004 (MMIV) was a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Location within England Coordinates: , Sovereign state United Kingdom Constituent country England Region North West England Ceremonial county Historic county Merseyside Lancashire Admin HQ Liverpool City Centre Founded 1207 City Status 1880 Government - Type Metropolitan borough, City - Governing body Liverpool City Council Area - Borough & City 43. ... Motto (French) God and my right Anthem No official anthem - the United Kingdom anthem God Save the Queen is commonly used England() â€“ on the European continent() â€“ in the United Kingdom() Capital (and largest city) London (de facto) Official languages English (de facto)1 Government Constitutional monarchy - Monarch Queen Elizabeth II... Mansour district is one of nine administrative districts in Baghdad. ... // 1400 - Owain GlyndÅµr declared Prince of Wales by his followers. ... Year 2004 (MMIV) was a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Jack Hensley, seated in orange, before his beheading by the five men standing over him Jack Hensley (September 22, 1955 â€“ September 21, 2004) was an American engineer from Marietta, Cobb County, Georgia, near Atlanta. ... Eugene Armstrong, in orange, seated, before his decapitation by the five men standing over him. ... Mike the Headless Chicken struts. ...

On September 18, the Tawhid and Jihad ("Oneness of God and Holy War") Islamist group, led by Jordanian Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, released a video of the three men kneeling in front of a Tawhid and Jihad banner. The kidnappers said they would kill the men within 48 hours if their demands for the release of Iraqi women prisoners held by coalition forces were not met. Jamaat al-Tawhid wal Jihad members with Shosei Koda and with the banner in the background Jamaat al-Tawhid wal-Jihad (Arabic: , Monotheism and Holy War Movement) is the Islamist guerrilla network of Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, a Jordanian-born Islamist militant believed operating against United States-led... Flag, featuring the Shahada, used by Muslims Army during early Islam Jihad (Arabic: IPA: ) as an Islamic term, is sometimes referred to as the sixth pillar of Islam, although it occupies no official status as such in Sunni Islam. ... Islamism is a political ideology derived from the conservative religious views of Muslim fundamentalism. ... Wikinews has related news: Abu Musab al-Zarqawi killed in airstrike Abu Musab al-Zarqawi (Arabic: , , Abu Musab from Zarqa)) (October 20, 1966 â€“ June 7, 2006), born as Ahmad Fadeel al-Nazal al-Khalayleh (Arabic: , )was a Jordanian who ran a militant training camp in Afghanistan. ... It has been suggested that this article or section be merged with multinational force in Iraq. ...

Armstrong was beheaded on September 20 when the deadline expired, Hensley 24 hours later, and Bigley over two weeks later, despite the intervention of the Muslim Council of Britain and the indirect intervention of the British government. Videos of the killings were posted on Islamist websites and on at least one shock site specializing in violence and pornography. Using voice-recognition technology, the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) has claimed that al-Zarqawi personally carried out the beheading of Armstrong. is the 263rd day of the year (264th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... The Muslim Council of Britain (MCB) is an unincorporated association founded in 1997 with the following aims: To promote co-operation, consensus and unity on Muslim affairs in the UK. To encourage and strengthen all existing efforts being made for the benefit of the Muslim community. ... A shock site is a website that is intended to be offensive or shocking to most of its viewers, containing shocking material which is considered distasteful and crude, and is generally of a pornographic, scatological, or extremely violent nature. ... The Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) is an intelligence agency of the United States government. ...

After Bigley's death, it emerged that the British Secret Intelligence Service (MI6) had launched a rescue operation that had allowed Bigley to escape for a brief period, but he was recaptured at a roadblock, taken back to the Tawhid and Jihad safehouse, and beheaded shortly afterwards. The Secret Intelligence Service (SIS), commonly known as MI6 (Military Intelligence, Section 6),[1] is the United Kingdoms external intelligence agency. ...

Attempts to save Bigley

After Armstrong and Hensley were killed, the British government and media responded by turning Bigley's fate into Britain's major political issue during this period, leading to subsequent claims that the government had become a hostage to the situation, as President Jimmy Carter had arguably done during the 444-day Iran hostage crisis in 1979-81. James Earl Jimmy Carter, Jr. ... Iranian militants escort a blindfolded U.S. hostage to the media. ...

British Foreign Secretary Jack Straw and Prime Minister Tony Blair personally contacted the Bigley family several times to assure them that everything possible was being done, short of direct negotiation with the kidnappers. It was also reported that a Special Air Service (SAS) team had been placed on standby in Iraq in the event that a rescue mission might become possible. John Whitaker Straw (born August 3, 1946) is a British Labour Party politician. ... For other people of the same name, see Tony Blair (disambiguation) Anthony Charles Lynton Blair (born May 6, 1953)[1] is the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, First Lord of the Treasury, Minister for the Civil Service, Leader of the Labour Party, and Member of Parliament for the constituency... The Special Air Service Regiment (SAS) is the principal special forces unit of the British Army. ...

The British government issued a statement saying it held no Iraqi women prisoners, and that the only two women known to be in U.S. custody were two so-called high-profile Iraqi scientists, British-educated Dr. Rihab Taha and U.S.-educated Dr. Huda Salih Mahdi Ammash. Both women participated in Iraq's biological-weapons program, according to the United Nations weapons inspectorate. News reports had earlier suggested that other Iraqi women were indeed being held in U.S. custody, but it is not known to what extent these reports were out-of-date by the time of Bigley's kidnap. [1] Dr. Rihab Taha Dr. Rihab Rashid Taha al-Azawi, nicknamed by the media Doctor Germ, is an English-educated Iraqi microbiologist who worked in Saddam Husseins biological weapons program. ... Most Wanted playing card Huda Salih Mahdi Ammash (Arabic: Ù‡Ø¯Ù‰ ØµØ§Ù„Ø Ù…Ù‡Ø¯ÙŠ Ø¹Ù…Ø§Ø´) (born Baghdad 1953) is an American-educated Iraqi scientist, dubbed Mrs. ... The foundation of the U.N. The United Nations (UN) is an international organization whose stated aims are to facilitate co-operation in international law, international security, economic development, social progress and human rights issues. ...

The Iraqi provisional government stated that Dr. Taha and Dr. Ammash could be released immediately, stressing that this was about to happen anyway, as no charges had been brought against the women.

Second and third videos

A second video was released on September 22 by Bigley's captors, this time showing Bigley pleading for his life and begging British Prime Minister Tony Blair to save him. Clearly exhausted and highly emotional, Bigley spoke directly to Blair: "I need you to help me now, Mr Blair, because you are the only person on God's earth who can help me." The video was posted on Islamist websites and shown on al Jazeera television. is the 265th day of the year (266th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... In the United Kingdom, the Prime Minister is the head of government, exercising many of the executive functions nominally vested in the Sovereign, who is head of state. ... Al Jazeera logo Al Jazeera (الجزيرة), meaning The Island or The (Arabian) Peninsula (whence also Algiers) is an Arabic television channel based in Qatar. ...

Around this time it emerged that Bigley's mother, Lil, 86 years old at the time of his abduction, had been born in Dublin and was therefore an Irish citizen; this meant Bigley himself was also an Irish citizen from birth. It was hoped this status would aid his release, as Ireland did not participate in the 2003 invasion of Iraq, and the Irish Government issued Bigley an Irish passport in absentia, which was shown on al-Jazeera television. Irish Labour Party spokesman on foreign affairs Micheal D. Higgins made an appeal on al-Jazeera. Sinn Féin leader Gerry Adams made two appeals, one on September 30 and a second on October 7. Dublin city centre at night WGS-84 (GPS) Coordinates: , Statistics Province: Leinster County: DÃ¡il Ã‰ireann: Dublin Central, Dublin North Central, Dublin North East, Dublin North West, Dublin South Central, Dublin South East European Parliament: Dublin Dialling Code: 01, +353 1 Postal District(s): D1-24, D6W Area: 114. ... The subject of this article is the 2003 invasion of Iraq. ... This page lists direct English translations of common Latin phrases, such as veni vidi vici and et cetera. ... For pre-Arthur Griffith use of the political name, see Sinn FÃ©in (19th century). ... Gerard Adams (Irish GearÃ³id Mac Ãdhaimh[1]; born 6 October 1948) is an Irish Republican politician and abstentionist Westminster Member of Parliament for Belfast West. ... is the 273rd day of the year (274th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... is the 280th day of the year (281st in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ...

On September 24, 50,000 leaflets prepared by the British Foreign Office, asking for information about Bigley's whereabouts, were distributed in al-Mansour, the wealthy district of Baghdad Bigley had been living in. In his home city of Liverpool, Christian and Muslim religious and civic leaders held joint prayer sessions for his safe return. September 24 is the 267th day of the year (268th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... The Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) is the United Kingdom government department responsible for promoting the interests of the United Kingdom abroad. ...

The Muslim Council of Britain condemned the kidnapping, saying it was contrary to the teachings of the Qur'an and sent a senior two-man delegation to Iraq to negotiate on Bigley's behalf. Bigley's family, particularly his brother Paul, was successful, with the help of the Irish government, in eliciting support for Bigley's release from Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat, King Abdullah of Jordan, and Colonel Gadaffi of Libya, who made public statements. The Muslim Council of Britain (MCB) is an unincorporated association founded in 1997 with the following aims: To promote co-operation, consensus and unity on Muslim affairs in the UK. To encourage and strengthen all existing efforts being made for the benefit of the Muslim community. ... The Qurâ€™Än [1] (Arabic: ;, literally the recitation; also sometimes transliterated as Quran, Koran, or Alcoran) is the central religious text of Islam. ... Mohammed Abdel Raouf Arafat al-Qudwa al-Husseini (August 24, 1929 â€“ November 11, 2004; Arabic: ), popularly known as Yasser Arafat, was Chairman of the Palestine Liberation Organization (1968â€“2004) and President[2] of the Palestinian National Authority (1993â€“2004). ... as-Sayyid Abdullah II bin al-Hussein al Hashimi, King of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan (Arabic: ) (born January 30, 1962, in Amman, Jordan), has been the King of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan since February 7, 1999. ... Muammar Abu Minyar al-Qaddafi 1 â€” pronounced Gaddafi â€” (Arabic: Ù…Ø¹Ù…Ø± Ø§Ù„Ù‚Ø°Ø§ÙÙŠ ) (born c. ...

A third video was released on September 29 showing Bigley chained inside a small chicken-wire cage, wearing an orange boiler suit apparently intended to be reminiscent of those worn by inmates at the U.S. facility in Guantanamo Bay. In the video, Bigley again begged for his life, saying, "Tony Blair is lying. He doesn't care about me. I'm just one person." is the 272nd day of the year (273rd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Detainees upon arrival at Camp X-Ray, January 2002 GuantÃ¡namo Bay detainment camp serves as a joint military prison and interrogation center under the leadership of Joint Task Force Guantanamo (JTF-GTMO), has occupied a portion of the United States Navys base at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba since 2002. ...

On October 1, another 100,000 leaflets asking for information about Bigley were distributed by the British Foreign Office in Baghdad. is the 274th day of the year (275th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ...

His death

Despite the efforts to save him, Bigley was beheaded on October 7, 2004. His death was first reported on Abu Dhabi television the following day. He was only weeks away from retirement and the birth of his first grandchild. A multi-faith memorial service, attended by Tony Blair and his wife Cherie, was held for him in Liverpool on November 13. As of April 2006, his body has not been recovered, although an alleged al-Qaeda militant awaiting trial for the 2003 Istanbul bombings has claimed he is "buried in a ditch at the entrance to Fallujah" [2]. Beheading. ... is the 280th day of the year (281st in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2004 (MMIV) was a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Abu Dhabi or Abu Zaby (Arabic language: أبوظبي) is the largest of the seven emirates that comprise the United Arab Emirates and was also the largest of the former Trucial States. ... Retirement is the point where a person stops employment. ... This article or section does not cite any references or sources. ... Cherie Blair (born 23 September 1954 in Bury, Lancashire, England), known professionally as Cherie Booth QC, is an English barrister. ... is the 317th day of the year (318th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... The Istanbul bombings were two truck bomb attacks carried out on two days in November 2003. ... This article is about the city of Fallujah in Iraq. ...

The kidnappers made a film apparently showing Bigley's killing, and the tape was subsequently posted on Islamist websites and on one "shock" site. According to reporters who watched the film, Bigley was wearing an orange jumpsuit, and read out a statement, before one of the kidnappers stepped forward and cut off his head with a knife. However, as with the Nick Berg video, the events may not be in real time. According to some of those who have watched it, there appear to be continuity gaps, and the final scene shows what some have interpreted as a bullet wound to Bigley's head. A shock site is a website that is intended to be offensive or shocking to most of its viewers, containing shocking material which is considered distasteful and crude, and is generally of a pornographic, scatological, or extremely violent nature. ... Nicholas Berg (April 2, 1978 â€“ May 7, 2004) was an American businessman seeking telecommunications work in Iraq during the U.S.-led occupation of Iraq. ...

News reports [3] published after Bigley's death suggested he had briefly managed to escape from the kidnappers with the help of two MI6 agents of Syrian and Iraqi origin, who paid two of his captors to help him. The captors attempted to drive Bigley, who was carrying a gun and was disguised, out of town, the reports said, but he was spotted and recaptured at an insurgent checkpoint. The two captors were said to have been beheaded. The Secret Intelligence Service (SIS), more commonly known as MI6 (originally Military Intelligence Section 6), or the Secret Service, is the United Kingdom external security agency. ...

After his death, the British media were criticized for the amount of news coverage his situation had been given. The same high-coverage news strategy was notably absent in the case of Margaret Hassan, the Irish-born aid worker, who held Irish, British and Iraqi citizenship, who was kidnapped on October 19, 2004 and killed two weeks later. For other uses, see News (disambiguation). ... A strategy is a long term plan of action designed to achieve a particular goal, most often winning. Strategy is differentiated from tactics or immediate actions with resources at hand. ... Margaret Hassan Margaret Hassan (also known as Madam Margaret) (April 18, 1945 â€“ November 16, 2004) was an aid worker who worked in Iraq for many years and was kidnapped and murdered there at the age of 59 by Islamic militants. ... Aid workers are the staff of humanitarian aid organizations, typically working overseas in development, disaster or complex emergencies. ... is the 292nd day of the year (293rd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2004 (MMIV) was a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

The sometimes controversial columnist Mark Steyn had his column pulled from the British Daily Telegraph on October 11, 2004 when in it he stated that Bigley's last words "Tony Blair has not done enough for me" would not be high up on his list of final utterances. Mark Steyn (born 1959) is a Canadian journalist, columnist, and film and music critic. ... This article deals with The Daily Telegraph in Britain, see The Daily Telegraph (Australia) for the Australian publication The Daily Telegraph is a British broadsheet newspaper founded in 1855. ... is the 284th day of the year (285th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2004 (MMIV) was a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

Torture-chamber discovery

The chicken-wire cage Bigley was filmed in was later reported to have been found in a house in the Iraqi town of Fallujah, a town said by the U.S. military to be a Sunni Muslim stronghold. [4] The November 2004 "Battle of Fallujah" [5] saw the U.S. military invade the town in an effort to quell an insurgency, and it was during this operation that Bigley's cage was discovered. The U.S. military stated that, in 20 houses, it found paraphernalia associated with hostage-holding and torture, including shackles, blood-stained walls, and a torture chamber. The bodies of some unnamed hostages, believed to be Iraqi, were allegedly found hanging from the walls.^{[citation needed]} Fallujah (Arabic: فلوجة; sometimes transliterated as Falluja and less commonly Fallouja, Falloujah, Faloojah, Faloojeh) is a city of about 350,000 inhabitants in the Iraqi province of Al Anbar, located roughly 69km (43 miles) west of Baghdad on the Euphrates. ... The US government and media was using the term insurgent as early as 1899 to describe rebels during the Philippine-American War, here Filipinos described as insurgents at the time lie in a trench after being executed by US forces. ... Look up Paraphernalia in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... Torture is defined by the United Nations Convention Against Torture as any act by which severe pain or suffering, whether physical or mental, is intentionally inflicted on a person for such purposes as obtaining from him or a third person information or a confession, punishing him for an act he...

Contents

Attempts to save Bigley

Second and third videos

His death

Torture-chamber discovery

See also

References

Contents

Attempts to save Bigley GA_googleFillSlot("encyclopedia_square");

Second and third videos

His death

Torture-chamber discovery

See also

References

Attempts to save Bigley