Piotr Stańczak
Encyclopedia
Piotr Stańczak was a Polish
geologist
who was beheaded
by Islamic terrorists in Pakistan
in February 2009. Stańczak was abducted in the city of Attock in September 2008 after gunmen shot dead his driver, translator and bodyguard with whom he was travelling in a car. His executioners said they murdered him because the Pakistani government failed to release Taliban prisoners. Officials at the Polish Embassy in Islamabad
saw the video of the execution and confirmed that the person who was executed was Piotr Stańczak.
The taped execution was reminiscent of the beheading in 2002 of Daniel Pearl
, at that time the last westerner to be murdered on video in Pakistan. Stańczak was allegedly offered the opportunity to avoid execution by converting to Islam. When Stańczak refused, he was forced to read statements before his murder. The video shows Stańczak pleading with the Polish government not to send troops to Afghanistan. He urges Poland to cut its ties with Pakistan, which he said had made no effort to secure his release. The footage then shows masked men cutting off Stańczak's head. His body was later recovered outside a paramilitary camp in Razmak
and returned to Poland aboard a Pakistani Air Force plane. A brief ceremony was held on the tarmac.
The Polish government
will issue international arrest warrants for the murderers, in addition to offering a 1 million złoty (about $290,000 USD
) reward for information that would lead to the arrest of the suspects. Warsaw also "categorically demands from Pakistan's authorities the capture of the culprits of this crime and their punishment with the full severity this act demands", according to a statement released by the Polish Foreign Ministry. Poland requested help from the United States in their efforts to catch the killers.
On July 25, 2009, Pakistani police arrested a former parliamentarian with close links to the Taliban, Shah Abdul Aziz, in connection with the murder of Stańczak. A captured member of the Taliban told an anti-terrorism court that he was given orders by Aziz to kill Stańczak.
On September 30, 2010, President of Poland posthumously awarded him the Officer's Cross of the Order of Polonia Restituta.
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
geologist
Geology
Geology is the science comprising the study of solid Earth, the rocks of which it is composed, and the processes by which it evolves. Geology gives insight into the history of the Earth, as it provides the primary evidence for plate tectonics, the evolutionary history of life, and past climates...
who was beheaded
Decapitation
Decapitation is the separation of the head from the body. Beheading typically refers to the act of intentional decapitation, e.g., as a means of murder or execution; it may be accomplished, for example, with an axe, sword, knife, wire, or by other more sophisticated means such as a guillotine...
by Islamic terrorists in Pakistan
Pakistan
Pakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is a sovereign state in South Asia. It has a coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and China in the far northeast. In the north, Tajikistan...
in February 2009. Stańczak was abducted in the city of Attock in September 2008 after gunmen shot dead his driver, translator and bodyguard with whom he was travelling in a car. His executioners said they murdered him because the Pakistani government failed to release Taliban prisoners. Officials at the Polish Embassy in Islamabad
Islamabad
Islamabad is the capital of Pakistan and the tenth largest city in the country. Located within the Islamabad Capital Territory , the population of the city has grown from 100,000 in 1951 to 1.7 million in 2011...
saw the video of the execution and confirmed that the person who was executed was Piotr Stańczak.
The taped execution was reminiscent of the beheading in 2002 of Daniel Pearl
Daniel Pearl
Daniel Pearl was an American journalist who was kidnapped and killed by Al-Qaeda.At the time of his kidnapping, Pearl served as the South Asia Bureau Chief of the Wall Street Journal, and was based in Mumbai, India. He went to Pakistan as part of an investigation into the alleged links between...
, at that time the last westerner to be murdered on video in Pakistan. Stańczak was allegedly offered the opportunity to avoid execution by converting to Islam. When Stańczak refused, he was forced to read statements before his murder. The video shows Stańczak pleading with the Polish government not to send troops to Afghanistan. He urges Poland to cut its ties with Pakistan, which he said had made no effort to secure his release. The footage then shows masked men cutting off Stańczak's head. His body was later recovered outside a paramilitary camp in Razmak
Razmak
Razmak is one of the three sub-divisions of North Waziristan Agency in Pakistan, the other two being Miranshah and Mirali. Inhabitants are Uthmanzai Wazirs. Razmak is further sub-divided in three Tehsils. Tehsil being the lowest administrative unit in the Federally Administered Tribal Areas of...
and returned to Poland aboard a Pakistani Air Force plane. A brief ceremony was held on the tarmac.
The Polish government
Politics of Poland
The politics of Poland take place in the framework of a parliamentary representative democratic republic, whereby the Prime Minister is the head of government of a multi-party system and the President is the head of state....
will issue international arrest warrants for the murderers, in addition to offering a 1 million złoty (about $290,000 USD
United States dollar
The United States dollar , also referred to as the American dollar, is the official currency of the United States of America. It is divided into 100 smaller units called cents or pennies....
) reward for information that would lead to the arrest of the suspects. Warsaw also "categorically demands from Pakistan's authorities the capture of the culprits of this crime and their punishment with the full severity this act demands", according to a statement released by the Polish Foreign Ministry. Poland requested help from the United States in their efforts to catch the killers.
On July 25, 2009, Pakistani police arrested a former parliamentarian with close links to the Taliban, Shah Abdul Aziz, in connection with the murder of Stańczak. A captured member of the Taliban told an anti-terrorism court that he was given orders by Aziz to kill Stańczak.
On September 30, 2010, President of Poland posthumously awarded him the Officer's Cross of the Order of Polonia Restituta.
See also
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