Paul Marshall Johnson Jr.
Paul Marshall Johnson | |
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Al Qaeda |
Paul Marshall Johnson Jr. (May 8, 1955 – c. June 18, 2004) was an American helicopter engineer who lived in Saudi Arabia. In 2004, he was taken hostage by militants and his murder was recorded on video tape.
Background
Johnson was born in Eagleswood Township, New Jersey.[1] He graduated from Southern Regional High School in 1973.[2]
Abduction and death
On June 12, 2004, Johnson, who worked for
Immediately after the video was released, American and Saudi Arabian authorities began to deal with the hostage situation. Both the United States and Saudi Arabia asserted that they would not comply with the kidnappers' demands. Those demands included, but were not limited to, releasing all militants being held in Saudi custody. The video was released on the same day that Crown Prince Abdullah promised to step up security and investigations against militant Islamic groups in Saudi Arabia.
One of Johnson's Saudi colleagues, Abdullah Al-Momin, published a petition message to the kidnappers through Al-Arabiya TV. He asked them in the name of Islam to free Johnson as he has nothing to do with the American military. "If they are really Muslims they should release him" Abdullah said.
Johnson's abduction came during increased
Videotaped killing
At 17h30
HostingAnime, the company which hosts images and video of his murder, have defended showing his execution.[8]
On July 21, 2004, Saudi security officials found Johnson's head in a refrigerator in the residence of Issa Al-Khalidi, following a shootout in Riyadh with Saudi security forces in which Al-Khalidi was killed. Issa's brothers, Abd Al Aziz Sad Muhaamad Awshan Al-Khalidi and Suleyman Saaed Mohammed Al-Khalidi, were later detainees at the Guantanamo Bay detention camp.[9][10][11]
See also
- Daniel Pearl
- Decapitation
- Foreign hostages in Iraq
- Eugene Armstrong
- Nick Berg
- Steven Vincent
- Kim Sun-il
- Jack Hensley
- List of solved missing person cases
- Kenneth Bigley
- Piotr Stanczak
- Shosei Koda
- Margaret Hassan
- Seif Adnan Kanaan
References
- ^ Chambers, Steve; Spoto, MaryAnn (June 19, 2004). "A Raid That Slays His Captors Comes Hours Too Late To Save Former Jerseyan Paul Johnson Jr.; Saudis gun down up to 5 militants after decapitation". The Star-Ledger. Archived from the original on March 4, 2016.
- ^ Zucchino, David. "After Pleas and Prayers, Community Joins Family in Mourning", Los Angeles Times, June 19, 2004. Accessed January 20, 2020. "Among the many signs of support was a digital bulletin board at Southern Regional High School: 'Our prayers are with the family of Paul Johnson, Class of 1973.'"
- ^ Macfarquhar, Neil (June 16, 2004). "THE REACH OF WAR: SAUDI HOSTAGE; Kidnappers of American Threaten to Kill Him in 3 Days". The New York Times. Retrieved March 27, 2010.
- ^ "Al-Qaeda site: Police helped in Johnson abduction". USA Today. June 21, 2004. Retrieved May 22, 2010.
- ^ Mortimer, Jasper (June 16, 2004). "Al-Qa'ida threatens to kill US hostage in Saudi". The Independent. London. Archived from the original on 2022-05-25. Retrieved May 22, 2010.
- ^ "Paul Johnson, U.S. Worker Kidnapped in Saudi Arabia, Beheaded". Bloomberg. June 18, 2004.
- ^ "Saudi says five most-wanted militants killed in protracted battle". Khaleej Times. 2005-09-06. Archived from the original on 2011-06-08. Retrieved 2020-05-02.
- ^ "Archived copy". www.mensnewsdaily.com. Archived from the original on 24 July 2004. Retrieved 13 January 2022.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) - ^ "ENCORE Investigation Update, Review, and Analysis". FBI.gov. Retrieved 12 September 2021.
- ^ "U.S. hostage's head found in freezer". CNN. July 21, 2004. Retrieved May 22, 2010.
- ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2023-01-21.