The father of a Jordanian pilot who was brutally executed by ISIS called on the government and King Abdullah II to avenge his son's murder by taking that terror organization out for good.
His son, 27-year-old Lt. Moath al-Kasasbeh, was lit on fire by ISIS while confined in a cage. While Jethro Mullen, Ashley Fantz and Dana Ford of CNN reported that in response, Jordan executed two prisoners, including a woman suicide bomber that ISIS wanted as part of a prisoner swap and a former top aide to deceased al-Qaida in Iraq leader Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, Safi al-Kaseasbeh wanted his country to do more.
"These were criminals and there is no comparison between them and Moath. His blood is more valued than Sajida al-Rishawi and Ziad Karbouli," al-Kaseasbeh said. "I demand that revenge should be bigger than executing prisoners."
CNN reported that his son's brutal slaying was captured on video and uploaded to the Internet on Tuesday. Many media organizations have elected not to show the gruesome images, which drew worldwide condemnation.
Jane Onyanga-Omara of USA Today reported that the pilot's father revealed in a television interview what he hoped the Jordanian government would do in response to his son's death.
"I ask that this should not end with Sajida al-Rishawi and Ziad Karbouli," al-Kaseasbeh said. "I expect the government to seek revenge, severe revenge for the blood of (Muath) against this horrid organization, this criminal organization, this organization that is far from Islam and the spirit of Islam."
The pilot's father added that "the pain is deep" for him.
"My son isn't just the son of Safi al-Kaseasbeh; he is the son of every Jordanian," al-Kaseasbeh said. "Grief is now in the hearts of every Jordanian mother and every Jordanian father."
CNN reported that the king addressed the nation of Jordan in a televised statement on Tuesday, describing ISIS as a cowardly and deviant group that had nothing to do with Islam.
"The brave pilot gave his life defending his faith, country and nation and joined other Jordanian martyrs who gave their lives for Jordan," Abdullah said.
According to William Booth and Taylor Luck of the Washington Post, Jordan's king put on a brave face, vowing Wednesday that he will use his military forces to take out ISIS militants with "relentless" strikes upon "their own homes."
"We will be on the lookout for these criminals, and we will hit them in their own homes," Abdullah declared through the state news agency Petra. "We are fighting this war to protect our faith, values and our humanitarian principles. Our fight will be relentless."
The Washington Post noted that the king, who is Western-educated and claims to be a descendant of the prophet Muhammad, has previously avoided issuing direct threats against ISIS. He was also in Washington to sign a deal boosting the amount of U.S. aid to Jordan when the video was released online, which forced him to cut his U.S. trip short.
"We are waging this war to protect our faith, our values and human principles and our war for their sake will be relentless and will hit them in their own ground," Abdullah said during a security meeting, according to state television.
