The family of Warren Weinstein, an American hostage killed in a January drone strike, slammed the “inconsistent and disappointing” assistance they received from the federal government in trying to save his life.
Weinstein and Giovanni Lo Porto, an Italian national, were killed during a counterterrorism airstrike on an al Qaeda compound on the Afghan-Pakistani border in January, the White House admitted Thursday.
Weinstein was kidnapped roughly three and a half years ago while working as humanitarian aid worker in Pakistan, the Weinstein family said, in a statement that thanked prominent officials by name but urged the government to take its responsibilities toward Americans held hostage “seriously.”
The Obama administration said Thursday that it did not believe the two hostages were present when it attacked the compound. Although a White House statement noted that the attack had also netted the life of American al Qaeda leader Ahmed Farouq, administration officials were quick to note that neither the terrorist nor the hostages were specific targets of the attack. It added that Adam Gadahn, another American al Qaeda member, was killed in a separate attack in which he too had not been specifically targeted.
Weinstein’s family spoke movingly of his life and condemned his kidnappers, but also expressed unhappiness with the government’s response.
Read the statement by Weinstein’s widow Elaine Weinstein below:
On behalf of myself, our two daughters, our son-in-law, and two grandchildren, we are devastated by this news and the knowledge that my husband will never safely return home. We were so hopeful that those in the U.S. and Pakistani governments with the power to take action and secure his release would have done everything possible to do so and there are no words to do justice to the disappointment and heartbreak we are going through. We do not yet fully understand all of the facts surrounding Warren’s death but we do understand that the U.S. government will be conducting an independent investigation of the circumstances. We look forward to the results of that investigation. But those who took Warren captive over three years ago bear ultimate responsibility. I can assure you that he would still be alive and well if they had allowed him to return home after his time abroad working to help the people of Pakistan.
The cowardly actions of those who took Warren captive and ultimately to the place and time of his death are not in keeping with Islam and they will have to face their God to answer for their actions.
Warren spent his entire life working to benefit people across the globe and loved the work that he did to make people’s lives better. In Pakistan, where he was working before he was abducted, he loved and respected the Pakistani people and their culture. He learned to speak Urdu and did everything he could to show his utmost and profound respect for the region.
We cannot even begin to express the pain our family is going through and we ask for the respect of our privacy as we go through this devastating ordeal.
While working as an economic development advisor, Weinstein was captured from his home in Lahore, Pakistan on August 13, 2011, and was held hostage for more than three and a half years.
I want to thank Congressman John Delaney, Senator Barbara Mikulski, and Senator Ben Cardin — as well as specific officials from the Federal Bureau of Investigation — for their relentless efforts to free my husband.” Mrs. Weinstein added, “Unfortunately, the assistance we received from other elements of the U.S. Government was inconsistent and disappointing over the course of three and a half years. We hope that my husband’s death and the others who have faced similar tragedies in recent months will finally prompt the U.S. Government to take its responsibilities seriously and establish a coordinated and consistent approach to supporting hostages and their families.
I am disappointed in the government and military in Pakistan. Warren’s safe return should have been a priority for them based on his contributions to their country, but they failed to take action earlier in his captivity when opportunity presented itself, instead treating Warren’s captivity as more of an annoyance than a priority. I hope the nature of our future relationship with Pakistan is reflective of how they prioritize situations such as these.
