Abdul-Rahman Kassig: Idealist ‘simply seeking to help’ – WBNews

Abdul-Rahman Kassig believed it was his duty to alleviate the suffering of people affected by conflict in the Middle East. Mr Kassig, known as Peter Kassig before he converted to Islam, founded a humanitarian organisation to help refugees who had fled from Syria. In interviews and letters to his family, Mr Kassig, 26, said he was driven by a “sense of purpose” and a desire to help others after serving with the US military in Iraq. In 2012, he wrote: “The truth is sometimes I really think I would like to do something else, but at the end of the day this work is really the only thing that I have found that gives my life both meaning and direction.” Image copyright Kassig Family Abdul-Rahman (aka Peter) Kassig Former US Army Ranger Served in Iraq in 2007 Travelled to Lebanon in May 2012, volunteering in hospitals and treating Syrian refugees Founded aid organisation Special Emergency Response and Assistance (Sera) in 2012 to provide aid to Syrian refugees Captured by Islamic State in October 2013 while travelling to Deir Ezzour in eastern Syria Converted to Islam in 2013, changing name from Peter Kassig Abdul-Rahman Kassig’s letters home A native of Indiana, Mr Kassig “spent his late teens and early 20s searching for his place in the world”, his parents Ed and Paula Kassig said in a statement. He joined the US military and served as an Army Ranger in Iraq in 2007. He was given an honourable discharge from the Army…more detail