The daughter of a British aid worker killed by ISIS has come face to face with one of the men accused of being a member of the ISIS gang known as "The Beatles" and conspiring to murder her father, David Haines.
At a pretrial hearing in the US, Bethany Haines saw El Shafee Elsheikh for the first time.
She has since explained how her life was turned upside down by the killing of her father and said she would tell the court that she wanted Elsheikh, who is due to stand trial in January, to reveal where the bodies of ISIS hostages were buried.
She said she felt “nothing but disgust” for Elsheikh, who is accused of involvement in the murder of several British and American hostages in Syria between 2014 and 2015.
Ms Haines plans to tell Elsheikh in court to "give up the location of the remains of our loved ones".
She will urge him to "do it for my son who can finally say goodbye to his grandad", she said.
At the pretrial hearing she, and the relatives of other hostages killed by ISIS, saw the accused for the first time.
“Even hearing my dad’s name in court, I got emotional and had to step out for a moment,” Ms Haines said.
She described what it was like to see Elsheikh for the first time.
“He was masked. And so I couldn't really tell what his facial expression was," she said.
“He just stared right into my eyes and I stared back. I'm not going to be intimidated by him. I'm not going to look away.
"You know, I've nothing to be ashamed of. He's the one who's got to be intimidated or embarrassed."
She has also revealed what she plans to say when she makes an impact statement to the court.
Mr Haines said Elsheikh “brutally murdered good and innocent people”.
Diane Foley, mother of killed journalist James Foley, and Marsha Mueller, whose aid worker daughter Kayla was another ISIS victim, also attended the pretrial hearing.
“I actually thought I would be really angry and struggle with keeping a cool head, but I actually felt nothing but disgust,” Ms Haines said.
She said her “whole life has been turned upside down” by her father's killing and that she “wakes up everyday thinking about him”.
“The Prophet Mohammed said the worst person before Allah would be the one who killed those who did not fight him," she plans to say in her impact statement.
“No matter what you say, this was not about religion, you brutally murdered good and innocent people, and now you have to live with that for the rest of your life.”
Last month, Alexanda Amon Kotey, who is also accused of being a member of the ISIS 'Beatles' gang, has pleaded guilty to several charges, including kidnap, torture and murder.
As part of his plea deal, he has agreed to meet victims’ families.
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Company profile
Name: Steppi
Founders: Joe Franklin and Milos Savic
Launched: February 2020
Size: 10,000 users by the end of July and a goal of 200,000 users by the end of the year
Employees: Five
Based: Jumeirah Lakes Towers, Dubai
Financing stage: Two seed rounds – the first sourced from angel investors and the founders' personal savings
Second round raised Dh720,000 from silent investors in June this year
GIANT REVIEW
Starring: Amir El-Masry, Pierce Brosnan
Director: Athale
Rating: 4/5
Another way to earn air miles
In addition to the Emirates and Etihad programmes, there is the Air Miles Middle East card, which offers members the ability to choose any airline, has no black-out dates and no restrictions on seat availability. Air Miles is linked up to HSBC credit cards and can also be earned through retail partners such as Spinneys, Sharaf DG and The Toy Store.
An Emirates Dubai-London round-trip ticket costs 180,000 miles on the Air Miles website. But customers earn these ‘miles’ at a much faster rate than airline miles. Adidas offers two air miles per Dh1 spent. Air Miles has partnerships with websites as well, so booking.com and agoda.com offer three miles per Dh1 spent.
“If you use your HSBC credit card when shopping at our partners, you are able to earn Air Miles twice which will mean you can get that flight reward faster and for less spend,” says Paul Lacey, the managing director for Europe, Middle East and India for Aimia, which owns and operates Air Miles Middle East.
RACE CARD
5pm: Wathba Stallions Cup – Handicap (PA) Dh70,000 (Turf) 2,200m
5.30pm: Khor Al Baghal – Conditions (PA) Dh80,000 (T) 1,600m
6pm: Khor Faridah – Handicap (PA) Dh80,000 (T) 1,600m
6.30pm: Abu Dhabi Fillies Classic – Prestige (PA) Dh110,000 (T) 1,400m
7pm: Abu Dhabi Colts Classic – Prestige (PA) Dh110,000 (T) 1,400m
7.30pm: Khor Laffam – Handicap (TB) Dh80,000 (T) 2,200m
The Bio
Favourite Emirati dish: I have so many because it has a lot of herbs and vegetables. Harees (oats with chicken) is one of them
Favourite place to go to: Dubai Mall because it has lots of sports shops.
Her motivation: My performance because I know that whatever I do, if I put the effort in, I’ll get results
During her free time: I like to drink coffee - a latte no sugar and no flavours. I do not like cold drinks
Pet peeve: That with every meal they give you a fries and Pepsi. That is so unhealthy
Advice to anyone who wants to be an ironman: Go for the goal. If you are consistent, you will get there. With the first one, it might not be what they want but they should start and just do it
Zayed Sustainability Prize
PRO BASH
Thursday’s fixtures
6pm: Hyderabad Nawabs v Pakhtoon Warriors
10pm: Lahore Sikandars v Pakhtoon Blasters
Teams
Chennai Knights, Lahore Sikandars, Pakhtoon Blasters, Abu Dhabi Stars, Abu Dhabi Dragons, Pakhtoon Warriors and Hyderabad Nawabs.
Squad rules
All teams consist of 15-player squads that include those contracted in the diamond (3), platinum (2) and gold (2) categories, plus eight free to sign team members.
Tournament rules
The matches are of 25 over-a-side with an 8-over power play in which only two fielders allowed outside the 30-yard circle. Teams play in a single round robin league followed by the semi-finals and final. The league toppers will feature in the semi-final eliminator.
French business
France has organised a delegation of leading businesses to travel to Syria. The group was led by French shipping giant CMA CGM, which struck a 30-year contract in May with the Syrian government to develop and run Latakia port. Also present were water and waste management company Suez, defence multinational Thales, and Ellipse Group, which is currently looking into rehabilitating Syrian hospitals.
Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis
Top New Zealand cop on policing the virtual world
New Zealand police began closer scrutiny of social media and online communities after the attacks on two mosques in March, the country's top officer said.
The killing of 51 people in Christchurch and wounding of more than 40 others shocked the world. Brenton Tarrant, a suspected white supremacist, was accused of the killings. His trial is ongoing and he denies the charges.
Mike Bush, commissioner of New Zealand Police, said officers looked closely at how they monitored social media in the wake of the tragedy to see if lessons could be learned.
“We decided that it was fit for purpose but we need to deepen it in terms of community relationships, extending them not only with the traditional community but the virtual one as well," he told The National.
"We want to get ahead of attacks like we suffered in New Zealand so we have to challenge ourselves to be better."
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India Test squad
Virat Kohli (c), Mayank Agarwal, Rohit Sharma, Cheteshwar Pujara, Ajinkya Rahane, Hanuma Vihari, Rishabh Pant (wk), Wriddhiman Saha (wk), Ravichandran Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammed Shami, Umesh Yadav, Ishant Sharma, Shubman Gill
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Kumulus Water
Started: 2021
Founders: Iheb Triki and Mohamed Ali Abid
Based: Tunisia
Sector: Water technology
Number of staff: 22
Investment raised: $4 million
