The British Foreign Office is continuing to examine a video purporting to show the murder of Irish aid worker Ms Margaret Hassan to check if it is genuine.
Margaret Hassan's sisters (L-R) Catherine, Deirdre and Geraldine Fitzsimons making a statement at Government Buildings in Dublin on November 2nd. A memorial service was held for Ms Hassan this morning in Kenmare, where one of her sisters lives with her family
Yesterday, the British embassy in Baghdad reportedly confirmed that the video, which was sent to Al-Jazeera television station showed the brutal death of the 59-year-old aid worker abducted by an unknown group in Baghdad on October 19 th.
Al-Jazeera did not broadcast the video. A spokesman, Mr Jihad Ballout, said the station was not initially sure of its authenticity. "We invited British diplomatic officials to come and view it in Doha, Qatar, with the aim of helping us ascertain whether it was Ms Hassan or not," he added. "It's now likely that the image depicts Ms Hassan."
Speaking in Baghdad, her husband, Mr Tahseen Ali Hassan, begged for the return of his wife's body.
A memorial service was held for Ms Hassan this morning in Kenmare, where her sister, Ms Geraldine Riney, lives with her family. Ms Hassan had been part of Iraq for 30 years and for over a decade had headed one of the most important agencies providing therapeutic feeding, clean water, medicine and hospital services.
Kenmare parish priest Fr Tom Crean told the ecumenical service in Holy Cross Church that Ms Hassan's death was an unspeakable loss.
Her employer, the aid agency CARE International said she was an extraordinary woman who dedicated her life to the poor and disadvantaged in Iraq, particularly to children.
The British Prime Minister, Mr Tony Blair, the President, Mrs McAleese, and the Taoiseach, Mr Ahern, led the tributes to the "friend of the Arab world" who had Irish, British and Iraqi nationality.
Ms Hassan's death will make relief efforts "almost impossible" to carry out in Iraq, the EU said today.
Mr Poul Nielson said: "This kind of savagery makes it almost impossible for relief agencies to continue their crucial work in Iraq."
He said CARE International has been a long-standing partner of the EU's humanitarian aid office, Echo, in Iraq, receiving EU funds "for almost a decade."
The EC has so far refused to send in its own humanitarian aid workers to Baghdad, saying it cannot guarantee their safety. It is running its aid efforts through other groups, including CARE and the International Red Cross. The EU has committed €300 million in humanitarian and reconstruction aid for Iraq this year. A similar commitment is expected next year.