Radio Sawa Interviews Father of Jordanian Pilot Killed by ISIL
In an interview with Radio Sawa, Safi al-Kasasbeh, father of Moath al-Kasasbeh, the Jordanian pilot burned to death by ISIL, said that he met with Jordan’s King Abdullah before he learned that his son was killed. King Abdullah had promised al-Kasasbeh that the pilot’s blood will not go in vain, and if he got hurt ISIL would see an extremely strong response.
That’s what is happening now, according to al-Kasasbeh. Jordan’s air strikes started targeting ISIL caves on daily basis and after the raids “Jordanian warplanes flew over al-Kasasbeh village and saluted us,” al-Kasabeh said. “His Majesty was here and told me that I will see fighter jets flying back from the city of Raqqa. Five minutes later, I saw them fly over our village.” Al-Kasasbeh told Radio Sawa that Jordanian pilots have been bombing ISIL constantly, “the pilots were deeply hurt for losing their brother.”
He added, “ISIL showed its true nature, and the youth who used to sympathize with it learned what ISIL truly is. I assure you that within the Jordanian Kingdom, they lost any good standing that they had. Those who used to stay quiet when ISIL was mentioned now say that ISIL militants are infidels; they are monsters.”
Several sheikhs who visited the family to offer their condolences called for fighting ISIL, since they distorted the image of Islam, according to al-Kasasbeh.