Haines video similar to Sotloff and Foley killings

An image grab taken from a video released by the Islamic State and identified by private terrorism monitor SITE Intelligence Group on Friday purportedly shows British aid worker David Haines dressed in orange and on his knees in a desert landscape speaking to the camera before being beheaded by a masked militant. This would be the third such execution in recent weeks, after two US journalists taken hostage in Syria were shown murdered. Photo: AFP

A video purporting to show the murder of British aid worker David Haines was released by Islamic State militants on Saturday. It bears noticeable similarities to the videos released in recent weeks, depicting the beheadings of US journalists Steven Sotloff and James Foley.

Location

The David Haines video appears to have been recorded on an arid and deserted hill, very similar to the landscape in the Sotloff and Foley videos. Elliot Higgins, a British weapons expert and founder of online journalism site Bellingcat, claims to have pinpointed the site of James Foley's killing to the hills south of Raqqa, in Syria.

Timeline

It is not yet clear when the video was filmed. Haine's hair appears to have grown since his appearance at the end of the Sotloff beheading video, so his may have been recorded at a later date. Sotloff's hair had grown since his initial appearance in the James Foley video.

Killing

Throughout the video, Haines appears kneeling, next to his killer. Much like Sotloff and Foley before him, Haines is pictured wearing an orange jumpsuit. In contrast, the killer is wearing a black outfit identical to that worn by the killer in both the Sotloff and Foley videos. Only his eyes and hands are visible. He is also holding a hand knife, similar to the one seen in the other videos.

Haines's killer speaks with a marked British accent, sounding very similar to the militant in the Sotloff and Foley videos. Haines's killer is shown to be left-handed, as were the killers in both previous videos.

All three videos begin with the hostages making speeches to the camera. Haines addressed David Cameron, whereas Sotloff and Foley both addressed Obama and criticised US action against Isis.

Production/edits

All three videos are structured very similarly. Though roughly edited, the Haines video begins with a clip of David Cameron speaking about the UK decision to arm the Kurds to fight Isis. Both the Sotloff and Foley videos began with footage of Obama.

All three videos have similar production: Arabic subtitles are used throughout, title cards have similar font and the various components are edited together in a similar fashion.

At the end of the Haines video, a fourth hostage, a Briton, appears kneeling and being threatened by the killer. Haines appeared at the end of the Sotloff video and Sotloff was paraded at the end of the Foley video.