London, Oct 22 (IANS/EFE): The father of British hostage John Cantlie, who has been held captive by the Islamic State (IS) terrorist group in Syria since 2012, has died days after recording a video asking the captors to release his son, his family announced Wednesday.

Paul Cantlie died at the age of 80 Oct 16 due to complications from pneumonia, according to a statement issued by his family.

The statement added that the father died before knowing whether the jihadis had received his plea for his son to be freed.

The family said that they have tried to contact John Cantlie before publicly releasing the news of his father's death, without revealing more details.

"Many in the country will recall the recent broadcast from his (Paul's) hospital bed, when so demonstrably ill, but determined that his journalist son John should hear from his father 'how very proud I am of him'," the statement read.

Over the past several months, the IS released several videos of John Cantlie, a freelance journalist who worked for several British media, including The Sunday Telegraph and The Sunday Times.

The Sunni radical group has beheaded British humanitarian aid workers Alan Henning and David Haines and U.S. journalists James Foley and Steven Sotloff.