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Trump mentioned Hoosier native Kassig as ISIS casualty

President Donald Trump remembered Butler graduate Abdul-Rahman (Peter) Kassig Sunday in his statement about the death of the group's leader, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi.
Image from a 2014 Indianapolis memorial service for aid worker Abdul-Rahman (Peter) Kassig. (WTHR/File)

INDIANAPOLIS (WTHR) - President Donald Trump remembered Butler graduate Abdul-Rahman (Peter) Kassig Sunday in his statement about the death of the group's leader, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi.

"Baghdadi and the losers who worked with him – in some cases people who had no idea what they were getting into and how dangerous and unglamorous it was – killed many people," part of the statement read.

"Their murder of innocent Americans Jim Foley, Steven Sotloff, Peter Kassig, and Kayla Mueller were especially heinous. The shocking publicized murder of a Jordanian pilot who was burned alive in a cage for all to see, and the execution of Christians in Libya and Egypt, as well as the genocidal mass murder of Yazidis, rank ISIS among the most depraved organizations in history."

Abdul-Rahman Kassig was an American humanitarian worker held hostage for more than a year before he was killed in November, 2014. The then-26-year-old from Indiana, formerly known as Peter Kassig, was taken captive while doing aid work in Syria. ISIS claimed responsibility for Kassig's beheading in a graphic video.

Kassig's parents shared a statement at the time:

"We prefer our son is written about and remembered for his important work and the love he shared with friends and family, not in the manner the hostage takers would use to manipulate Americans and further their cause." - Kassig's family - 2014

On Sunday, Kassig's parents shared their thoughts on Facebook following Trump's announcement on the death of Bakr al-Baghdadi and said, "We pray, especially today, that all those who are affected by warfare and hate may find Light. Haste the day when swords shall be beaten into plowshares and spears into pruning hooks!"

Kassig served as an Army Ranger and studied at Hanover and Butler.

He founded a medical non-profit to provide food, clothing and medical supplies in Syria.

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