An American development consultant abducted from his home in Lahore, Pakistan nine months ago pleads with President Obama to meet demands set by al Qaeda in a short video posted on Islamist websites Sunday. Warren Weinstein, 70, appears calm and his voice remains steady as he asks the president to save his life. The video is less than 3 minutes long.
"My life is in your hands, Mr. President. If you accept the demands, I live. If you don't accept the demands, then I die,” he explains.
Weinstein says he wants to “rejoin my family and also enjoy my children, my two daughters, like you enjoy your two daughters."
“It's important you accept the demands and act quickly and don't delay," he says. "There'll be no benefit in delaying. It will just make things more difficult for me."
Weinstein says the demands “are not difficult” and “are according to Islamic law.”
To his wife, Elaine, Weinstein says, "I'm fine, I'm well, I'm getting all my medications, I'm being taken care of."
Al Qaeda claimed responsibility for Weinstein’s abduction in December. Among their demands is an end to U.S. airstrikes in Pakistan, Afghanistan, Yemen, Somalia and Gaza; the release of all al Qaeda and Taliban militants from U.S. prisons; and the release of terrorists held in connection with the 2003 attacks on the World Trade Center.
A U.S. State Department official noted Monday that America never negotiates with terrorists. "U.S. officials including the FBI are assisting in the Pakistani-led investigation and cooperation with the Pakistani authorities in the investigation continues," the official added.
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