Beverly Giesbrecht, a Canadian held hostage after she travelled to northern Pakistan says the Taliban will behead her by the end of the month if a ransom isn’t paid. In a new video provided to The Globe and Mail, she expresses fear for her life if her captors aren’t paid. Giesbrecht, 52, wearing a head scarf and sitting on a wooden chair, says that she is being held by the Taliban “near the Afghan border, either Pakistan or Afghanistan.”
The video opens with a voice reciting from the Koran. Abu Jindal, a moniker adopted by some jihadis, appears in Arabic and Urdu, superimposed over Giesbrecht’s face.
Giesbrecht, who is also known as Khadija Abdul Qahaar, has been a captive for four months. The West Vancouver resident converted to Islam after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks and runs a website, Jihad Unspun. Her visa application to Pakistan said she was a freelance journalist working on a documentary for the Al-Jazeera television network.
