Yes,
it's all worthwhile when you see what is
needed actually get to where it needs to
go. We know Alan as Gaji or Gajge. He's
the technical man sorting out radios.
Any little thing that's wrong with the
ambulance or anything, he'd be the man
that step up to it and fix it straight
away. He knew that the places which we
were taking aid to, the UN said
themselves that they can't get to these
places. they can't reach hundreds and
thousands of Syrian people. However, we
aid convoy members, we could get to
these people. So, we're literally a
lifeline for these people. So, when he
seen the difference he made himself on
the ground when he went to the refugee
camps, when he held the baby himself in
his hand, that was very powerful for
him. I think that changed his whole
life. Were you more scared for him as a
non-Muslim though? Yes, to some extent.
when we at the Turkey Syria border tried
telling him that you've made a huge
difference and if he wants to he can
leave you out here he didn't have to go
in and I made him feel like um very
proud of himself but um he insisted he
said I've come all the way here and I
want to see them children again what
happened when you crossed into Syria
that time in December
um we got into a coach at the Turkey
Syria border um we traveled into Syria
for about half an Now, we went into a
compound from like a little um it used
to be ex used to be a school before and
we were just sitting down. Everyone was
just sitting and just letting it sink in
that we're finally in Syria. We're
actually we're actually here. It's like
a surreal moment when you're actually
inside. All of a sudden, all these u
mass gunmen came running into the
compound and we didn't know what was
happening because um they weren't
speaking English and they were just
speaking Arabic and they were just
shouting and there's like guns and they
asked all of us to go into rooms and we
had to put our passports and our phones
in the middle of the room. They'd call
all of us out one by one. They'd ask us
um what our names were. They'd check it
on the passport to see if it matched.
They ask us our date of birth. They try
to find out if we spies. Um what were
our motives for coming to Syria? After
this whole ordeal finished, and we all
came out of our rooms again and them
guys went,
um we we that's when we found out that
Gaj was actually gone. So you stayed for
a little while, tried to get him back. I
think a lot of people were shaken by the
experience. So most people came back
home. Um I stayed behind with a few
other people and um we tried our best to
get him back and I genuinely thought
that we would go back home with him.
They came to the conclusion that Gadget
may have been a spy. Reason being cuz he
had a chip in his passport. So what I
done was um I volunteered and I gave my
own passport forward and I sent my
passport to Aleppo. But the reason why I
gave my passport forward was to show
them that look, I'm a British Muslim and
I've also got this chip in my passport.
It doesn't make me a spy. This is just
how our passports come. It came back but
um but it was without any joy. So they
established that Gaj wasn't a spy. Uh
but um but we were still unsuccessful in
getting back. Yeah. This is the picture
which I took in the refugee camp. I was
holding this baby and I noticed Kaj was
nearby watching. So I called him over
and I asked him to hold the baby as
well. This is what he's like. It's 10
months on now that you've not been able
to talk about this. How has it been for
you knowing that he's in there all that
time?
Um it's stressing. It's stressing. Um we
weren't getting any updates from
anybody. The only place I was looking
for updates was his Facebook.
Brothers and everybody. How has it been
for you seeing what happened last
Saturday, him appearing on an ISIS
video?
Um, to be honest, um, I've been dreading
this for some time. It's just like your
worst nightmare.
You don't you don't expect you hear
about these things in the news all the
time, but you don't ever expect someone
who you spend time with, someone who you
travel with, someone who you ate with,
someone who you went to refugee camps
with, and someone who you share gold
with. Yeah. And someone real life, this
is just real life. I know him. Yeah.
He's my friend. What would your message
to his kidnappers be?
Please, please, please, please show him
some mercy and understand he's a
humanitarian aid worker. He's not a
fighter. He's not come there for no
political reasons. He's come there
strictly to help the people. Please,
please don't kill him. Don't kill him.
Please spare him. Just let him come back
home.