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Japanese officials last night said they were investigating a new online message allegedly from Islamic State claiming one of the two Japanese hostages it holds has been executed.
The video also demanded a prisoner exchange for the remaining hostage. But it was deleted quickly, and militants on a website affiliated with the extremist Islamic State group disagreed about the message’s authenticity.
It remained unclear whether it was a hoax.
The video apparently shows Kenji Goto holding a picture claiming to depict fellow hostage Haruna Yukawa.
Japan’s Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga said government ministers were holding an emergency meeting about the new message.
Prime Minister Shinzo Abe told reporters as he rushed into his office that the release of the new message was “an outrageous and unforgivable act. We demand their immediate release”.
Kyodo News agency reported that the same video had been emailed to the wife of one of the hostages.

The Islamic State group had threatened on Tuesday to behead the men within 72 hours unless it received a US$200 million ransom.
Japan has scrambled for a way to secure the release of 47-year-old Kenji Goto, a journalist, and Haruna 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 Abullah II yesterday, the state-run Petra news agency reported.
One militant on the Islamic State-affiliated website warned that yesterday’s new message was fake, while another said that the message was intended only to go to the Japanese journalist’s family.
A third militant on the website noted that the video was not issued by al-Furqan, which is one of the media arms of the Islamic State group and has issued past videos involving hostages and beheadings. Yesterday’s message did not bear al-Furqan’s logo.
Their confusion over the video matched that of Japanese officials and outside observers.
Japanese officials have not directly said whether they are considering paying any ransom. Japan has joined other major industrial nations in the Group of Seven in opposing ransom payments. US and British officials said they advised against paying.
Goto’s mother made an appeal for the journalist’s rescue.
“Time is running out. Please, Japanese government, save my son’s life,” said Junko Ishido. “My son is not an enemy of the Islamic State.”
Ishido said she was astonished and angered to learn from her daughter-in-law that Goto had left for Syria less than two weeks after his child was born in October to try to rescue Yukawa.


Tokyo investigates video claiming that Japanese hostage has been killed

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe met with his National Security Council on the crisis. Photo: Reuters

Sreenshot from an online video released by Islamic State shows the group threatening to kill Japanese hostages  Kenji Goto (left) and Haruna Yukawa. Photo: AP 

Fate of two Japanese held hostage by IS uncertain after ransom deadline expires

Junko Ishido, mother of Islamic State hostage Kenji Goto, sheds tears during a press conference at the Foreign Correspondents' Club in Tokyo on Thursday. Photo: AFP

Junko Ishido, mother of Islamic State hostage Kenji Goto. Photo: AP

Under pressure. Prime Minister Shinzo Abe arrives at his official residence in Tokyo late on Thursday. Photo: Reuters

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Asia

Post claims to show Japanese journalist holding picture of executed fellow captive


Japanese officials said on Saturday night that they were investigating a new online message allegedly from Islamic State claiming one of the two Japanese hostages it holds has been executed.


Tokyo investigates video claiming that Japanese hostage has been killed

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}Post claims to show Japanese journalist holding picture of executed fellow captive

Post claims to show Japanese journalist holding picture of executed fellow captive