Japan: ‘Highly probable’ IS beheading video is authentic

TOKYO, Japan — The Japanese government said on Sunday it was “highly probable” that an Islamic State video, in which the group said it beheaded a second Japanese hostage, was authentic.

“After an extensive review, we believe it’s highly probable” the video is real, government spokesman Yoshihide Suga said in response to a reporter’s question about its authenticity.

When asked if the man in the video was 47-year-old journalist Kenji Goto, Suga replied: “We think so.”

The apparent killing of Goto — the second beheading of a Japanese hostage in a week — was announced in a video released online that included no mention of a Jordanian pilot also being held by IS, whom the jihadist group has threatened to kill.

In the video, Goto, a respected freelance journalist, is seen in an orange outfit — similar to those worn by Guantanamo Bay inmates — kneeling next to a standing masked man who speaks with a British accent and blames the Japanese government for his “slaughter.”

The man, dressed head-to-toe in black with his face covered, appears to be the same IS militant who has featured in the group’s previous execution videos.

The executioner addresses Abe, saying the murder was the result of “reckless” decisions by the Japanese government and would mark the beginning of “the nightmare for Japan.”

The brief video ends with the image of a body dressed in orange with a decapitated head on top of it.

Goto’s distraught mother said she “can’t find the words” to describe her son’s death.

“It’s deplorable, but Kenji is gone,” a sobbing Junko Ishido told reporters.

“I can’t find the words to describe how I feel about my son’s very sad death.”

Goto’s brother Junichi Goto said he had been holding out hope, “But that’s not possible anymore,” he was quoted as saying by public broadcaster NHK.

US President Barack Obama led international condemnation of the “heinous murder.”

“Through his reporting, Mr Goto courageously sought to convey the plight of the Syrian people to the outside world,” Obama said.

A spokesman for UN chief Ban Ki-moon also condemned the “barbaric murder,” and said the death “underscores the violence that so many have been subjected to in Iraq and Syria.”

Tokyo and Washington said they were working to confirm the video’s authenticity.

“But so far, there is no reason to doubt Goto’s death,” said Japanese Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida.

The apparent execution came after Japan said negotiations to win Goto’s release in a prisoner exchange had stalled.

IS had vowed to kill Goto and Jordanian pilot Maaz al-Kassasbeh by sunset Thursday unless Amman handed over an Iraqi female jihadist.

On Saturday morning Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe had renewed orders for officials to maintain close cooperation with Jordan in a bid to secure Goto’s release.

“The government has been working with the utmost efforts on the issue — I deeply regret that this is the result,” Abe told reporters on Sunday.

But “Japan will never yield to terrorism… (and) is firmly resolved to fulfill its responsibility in the international community’s fight against terrorism”.

Last week IS claimed responsibility for the beheading of another Japanese man it had been holding, self-described contractor Haruna Yukawa, after the expiration of a 72-hour deadline during which the jihadists had asked Tokyo to pay a $200 million ransom.