A British-born photojournalist has been killed by al-Qaeda militants in Yemen during a failed rescue attempt by US special forces.

Luke Somers, 33, had been held hostage since being kidnapped in the capital, Sana’a, in September 2013 as he left a supermarket.

Altogether two hostages held by Yemeni Al-Qaeda - American Luke Somers and South African Pierre Korkie - were killed by captors during a US rescue operation, it’s been officially confirmed. Korkie’s death reportedly came a day before his negotiated release.

Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel, confirming the fatalities, justified the operation to free the hostages.

"There were compelling reasons to believe Mr. Somers' life was in imminent danger," the Pentagon chief told journalists in Kabul.

***

Luke Daniel Somers (1981-2014) was a British-born American photojournalist who had been held hostage by the militant Islamist group al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) in Yemen. He was a dual citizen of the United Kingdom and the United States. He graduated from Beloit College with a Bachelor's degree in Creative Writing and later traveled to Egypt before settling in Yemen.

He was described by his friend, Fuad Al Kadas, as "a great man with a kind heart who really loves the Yemeni people and the country ... He was so dedicated in trying to help change Yemen's future, to do good things for the people that he didn't leave the country [Yemen] his entire time here."

Career

Somers worked as a freelance journalist. His pictures were featured in the BBC  and Al Jazeera. His work can also be found on his Corbis and Demotix pages.

Kidnapping

Somers was kidnapped by the organization in Sana'a, the capital of Yemen, in September 2013.

In December 2014, Somers appeared in a video was issued by AQAP. The video, which is aimed at the United States government, includes an AQAP official saying that the United States has three days to meet their demands. In the video, the official also says that “otherwise the American hostage held by us will meet his inevitable fate.” The video does not specify the demands AQAP want the United States to meet. The mission to rescue Somers was disclosed in response to the release of the video by AQAP.

Somers' mother and brother posted a video online in response to the AQAP's video of him. In the video, they pleaded with AQAP to "show mercy", and appealed for Somers' release. They also said Somers was only "trying to do good things for the Yemeni population".

Numerous News organizations, friends around the world, and family mobilized to save Somers. Yemen's The Nationalnewspaper appealed to save Somers' life. as well as the Committee to Protect Journalists [19] Friends of Luke Somers also organized petitions, vigils, twitter pages, and Facebook groups to gather support for his safe release.

First rescue attempt

After being authorized to do so by President of the United States Barack Obama, the Pentagon launched a secret mission to attempt to rescue Somers in November 2014, but the mission was unsuccessful. On December 4, they disclosed the fact that this mission had occurred.

The mission, an assault on a cave in remote Hagr As Sai'ar District in Hadhramaut Governorate, was successful in freeing six Yemenis, an Ethiopian and a Saudi but none of the Western hostages including Somers were found..

Details surrounding the mission remain classified as of December 4. It is believed that Somers had been moved from the hostage site before the special operators in the mission arrived there. Previous intelligence indicated that some hostages had been moved several days earlier, but it was not then known if Somers was among them.

Death

Main article: December 2014 US hostage rescue operation in Yemen

On 4 December 2014 Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) threatened to execute Somers within three days if the US government failed to meet unspecified demands.

On 6 December 2014 about 40 US special operations forces were involved in the attempt to rescue Luke Somers andPierre Korkie, a South African teacher also held by al-Qaida militants in Yemen, which followed US drone strikes in the area. The rescuers, backed by Yemeni ground forces, advanced within 100 meters of the compound in Shabwah Governorate when they were spotted by the militants. A firefight ensued. When the American soldiers finally entered the building were Somers and Korkie were kept, they found both men alive, but gravely wounded.

The US forces pulled Somers and Korkie onto V-22 Ospreys, and medical teams began performing surgery in midair. Korkie died during the flight and Somers died after the Ospreys landed on the USS Makin Island.

Information "indicated that Luke's life was in imminent danger," said US President Barack Obama. "Based on this assessment, and as soon as there was reliable intelligence and an operational plan, I authorized a rescue attempt." He condemned the "barbaric murder" of Somers. "The callous disregard for Luke's life is more proof of the depths of AQAP's depravity, and further reason why the world must never cease in seeking to defeat their evil ideology," Obama said in a statement.