Ban Ki-moon condemns Islamic State's killing of Japanese hostage Kenji Goto
The United Nations said in a statement Saturday that Ban Ki-moon "condemns in the strongest terms the barbaric murder of Kenji Goto. His death underscores the violence that so many have been subjected to in Iraq and Syria". According to the statement, the UN Secretary General is also calling "for the unconditional release of all hostages held by Daesh [IS]". The most recent Goto video IS extremists have released shows the Japanese hostage kneeling in front of a masked man armed with a knife. Japanese Defense Minister Gen Nakatani has said he could not refute reports of Goto's killing. On January 24, IS released a video depicting Kenji Goto holding an image of what appeared to be the beheaded body of another Japanese hostage, Haruna Yukawa. Earlier, IS militants demanded a ransom of $200 million for the release of both Japanese captives. On Tuesday, a voice in another IS video, claiming to be Kenji Goto, warned that he and Royal Jordanian Air Force pilot Muath Kasaesbeh would be killed within 24 hours if they were not exchanged for Sajida Rishawi, a failed Iraqi suicide bomber facing the death sentence in Jordan. On Wednesday, a Jordanian government spokesperson said that the country was ready to release the Iraqi bomber in exchange for Kasaesbeh. On Thursday, Jordan's Information Minister said the country had demanded IS to prove that Kasaesbeh was still alive, but received no response from the militants, Kazinform has learnt from Sputnik International .
IS, a radical Sunni group also known as the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) or the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), has captured vast areas in Iraq and Syria. It has become known for a number of atrocities, such as public crucifixions and beheadings of captured prisoners, including European journalists. Goto and Kasaesbeh were abducted by IS in Syria in 2014.
