The Islamic State has threatened to kill two Japanese hostages if $US 200 million in ransom is not paid in 72 hours. The threat was published in a video posted across websites linked to terrorist organizations. Two Japanese hostages dressed in orange are seen on their knees while a masked man stands in between them. The hostages were identified as independent journalist Kenji Goto Jogo and private military contractor Haruna Yukawa. “To the prime minister of Japan: Although you are more than 8,000 and 500 kilometers (5,280 miles) from the Islamic State, you willingly have volunteered to take part in this crusade…You have proudly donated $100 million to kill our women and children, to destroy the homes of the Muslims,” declares the masked terrorist, who appears to be the same masked man with a British accent that had appeared in earlier videos featuring the decapitation of journalists and other hostages. The threat comes days after Japan’s Prime Minister Shinzo Abe left Egypt after a meeting with government officials, including Egyptian President Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi. The Prime Minister is currently on a six-day visit to the Middle East. In a quick…
