$200M DEMAND Japan vows IS hostages ‘top priority’ Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has vowed to stand firm as Islamic State threatens to kill two Japanese hostages unless a $200 million ransom is paid within 72 hours. The captives, Kenji Goto and Haruna Yukawa, appeared in a new video released by the militant group. The footage features a black-clad figure holding a knife, who warned the Japanese public they had 72 hours to pressure their government to stop its “foolish” support for the US-led coalition waging a military campaign against IS. But Abe told journalists in Jerusalem during a six-day visit to the Middle East that “their lives are the top priority”. “We strongly demand the immediate release of the Japanese citizens unharmed,” he said, adding the international community cannot “cave into terrorism”. White House spokesman Josh Earnest called the IS video “deplorable” but emphasised America would not pay ransoms to terrorists.
Posted on: Fri, 23 Jan 2015 10:57:09 +0000
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