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Biography of Terry WaiteName: Terry WaiteBirth Date: May 31, 1939 Death Date: N/A Place of Birth: Styal, England Nationality: English Gender: Male Occupations: clergyman Terry Waite Terry Waite (born 1939), an official of the Church of England, made three trips to Lebanon in an effort to free westerners held hostage there. On his third try in 1987, he himself was taken hostage and not freed until almost five years later.Even after publication of his book Taken on Trust, chronicling his 1,763 days of being held by Islamic fundamentalists in Lebanon, Terry Waite remains a controversial figure. For many years he was a hero to the British media and public. When he was captured and throughout the years during which there was no news of his whereabouts, prayers were said in churches all over Britain for his safe return. To some he remained a saintly and courageous figure, the innocent envoy from the archbishop of Canterbury, whose intercession saved the lives of a number of Middle East hostages. But to others, notably including journalists specializing in Middle East affairs, …showed first 150 words…
…showed last 150 words…and reconciliation. True to his word, in July 1996 Waite, along with fellow former hostage John McCarthy, sent messages urging the release of four people on the first anniversary of their capture in Kashmir. Waite's various honors include the Commander of the Order of the British Empire bestowed upon him by Queen Elizabeth II. Further Reading Terry Waite's own account of his earlier life and his nearly five years as a hostage, Taken on Trust, was published in London (September 1993). Other books by Lebanon hostages include Brian Keenan's An Evil Cradling (1993) and Terry Anderson's Den of Lions (1993). Further light is cast on the Lebanon hostages affair in the various histories of the Iran-Contra affair chronicling the doings of Oliver North. Waite's mid-1990s activities have been noted in various news services including Yereth Rosen, "Britain still seeking release of Kashmir hostages," Reuters(July 3, 1996); and Patricia Edmonds, "Iran-Contra Charge," USA Today(May 5, 1994). |