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Charity worker Margaret Hassan killed in Baghdad
Her husband asks that her remains be returned
Baghdad (AsiaNews) -- Margaret Hassan has been killed: this according to her husband Tahseen Ali Hassan who spoke of a video showing her execution. In a joint statement, her family members say they "have to accept that she is gone", adding that their hearts "are broken". "What have her abductors gained? -- asked Tahseen Hassan, visibly distraught -- I need to get her back, so that she can rest in peace. Margaret had dedicated her entire life to the Iraqi people. I ask her abductors to contact me: please let me know how I can get her back".
Margaret Hassan was a humanitarian activist with "Care International". She was of Irish origin and had been married to an Iraqi for over 30 years. Her abduction took place last October 19. The day following her kidnapping, her husband had launched an appeal via the Arab "Al-Jazeera" television, asking for her release, saying that she had been in Iraq for purely humanitarian reasons. "Care International" has been in Iraq since the 1991 Gulf War, and has been carrying out humanitarian and medical assistance, as well as projects for the sanitization of drinking water. At the time of Margaret's kidnapping, there were some 30 Care workers (all Iraqis) working to bring relief to the country, but suspended all its activities in the wake of her abduction.
Within days, a good part of the Islamic world had expressed its solidarity in favour of the kidnapped volunteer. "My wife is loved by all," Hassan has said in the days following the kidnapping, underscoring that the humanitarian organization for which she worked "for 30 years is helping the Iraqi people".