By Ankit Panda
The Islamic State is demanding $200 million in ransom from the Japanese government for two captured Japanese citizens.
The Islamic State, a militant group that has terrorized eastern Syria and northern Iraq for over a year, released an online video on Tuesday purportedly showing two Japanese citizens it had captured. IS threatened to kill the hostages unless it received $200 million in ransom within 72 hours. The video resembles other threatening videos released by the group, including most notoriously the videos including U.S. citizens James Foley and Stephen Sotloff, and British citizens David Haines and Alan Henning. Similar to those videos, this one also features a figure clad in black standing with a knife and speaking in English, outlining the nature of the threat. The video is notable for being the first in which the Islamic State overtly demands financial ransom for captives.
“To the prime minister of Japan: Although you are more than 8,500 km away from the Islamic State, you willingly have volunteered to take part in this crusade,” notes the militant in the video. In the video, he demands “200 million” without specifying a currency, but Arabic subtitles clarify that the currency is indeed U.S. dollars. According to Reuters, the captured Japanese citizens have been identified as Haruna Yukawa and Kenji Goto. Although the exact date of the video’s production remains indeterminate, its release comes shortly after a trip to Cairo by Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe on January 17. In Cairo, Abe promised $200 million in non-military assistance for states engaged in the fight against the Islamic State.
Read the full story at The Diplomat