Japan condemns apparent IS execution of hostage Haruna Yukawa, demands release of remaining captive

The purported message claimed one of the Japanese hostages had been killed and demanded a prisoner exchange for the other. But the post was deleted quickly Saturday, and militants on a website affiliated with the ISIS disagreed about the message’s authenticity.

Associated Press could not verify the contents of the message, which varied greatly from previous videos released by ISIS, which now holds a third of both Syria and Iraq.

Citing the release of the photo purporting to show hostage Haruna Yukawa had been killed, Abe said after a late-night cabinet meeting: “Such an act of terrorism is outrageous and unforgivable. We feel strong resentment, and strongly condemn the act.”

Defence Minister Gen Nakatani said officials were still working to verifying the video and a photo shown on it.

Patrick Ventrell, a spokesman for the White House National Security Council, said US intelligence officials were working also to confirm whether it was authentic. “We stand in solidarity with Japan and are coordinating closely,” he said, and called for the immediate release of the hostages.

Abe said the government will not succumb to terrorism and will continue to cooperate with the international community in the fight against terrorism. He said Japan is still taking every possible step to win the release of both hostages and will continue the effort.

The ISIS had threatened on Tuesday to behead the men within 72 hours unless it received a $200 million ransom.

Japan has scrambled for a way to secure the release of 47-year-old Kenji Goto, a journalist, and Yukawa, a 42-year-old adventurer fascinated by war. Japanese diplomats had left Syria as the civil war there escalated, adding to the difficulty of contacting the militants holding the hostages.

Abe had a telephone call with Jordanian King Abdullah II Saturday, state-run Petra news agency reported, without elaborating on what they discussed. He also called the two hostages’ families.

One militant on the ISIS-affiliated website warned that Saturday’s new message was fake, while another said the message was intended only to go to the Japanese journalist’s family.

Japanese officials have not directly said whether they are considering paying any ransom.

Japan has joined other major industrial nations in opposing ransom payments. US and British officials said they advised against paying.