By Mustafa Caglayan
NEW YORK
"Our hearts are battered, but they will mend," the family of an American aid worker who was beheaded by ISIL in Syria told reporters Monday.
In a press conference at a Methodist church in Indianapolis, Paula and Ed Kassig, parents of 26-year-old Peter Kassig, asked for privacy to "mourn, cry -- and yes, forgive -- and begin to heal."
A 15-minute long video posted online Sunday showed the beheading of Kassig by ISIL. U.S. officials confirmed the authenticity of the video, in which 18 others are seen beheaded.
Kassig, an aid worker and former Army Ranger, was captured by ISIL in Syria in 2013. His family said he had converted to Islam and changed his name to Abdul-Rahman.
"Please pray for Abdul-Rahman, or Pete if that is how you knew him, at sunset this evening. Pray also for all people held against their will in Syria, Iraq, and around the world," his father said.
Kassig was the fifth Western hostage to be killed by ISIL since August and he previously appeared at the end of a video on Oct. 3 showing the execution of British hostage Alan Henning.
Western law enforcement agencies launched a probe Monday to identify the militants seen in the video showing Kassig's killing.
A Paris prosecutor opened an investigation against two French nationals for "murder as part of an organized gang and criminal conspiracy for a terrorist group," after they appeared in the video.
Prosecutor Francois Molins said the inquiry identified one of the French citizens as 22-year-old Maxime Hauchard, who reportedly calls himself Abu Abdullah Al Faransi.
A second man, whose identity was not revealed, is "the subject of an arrest warrant" as part of a judicial inquiry opened in October 2013, Molins told a press conference.
www.aa.com.tr/en
