AP, Beirut :The Islamic State group threatened to kill two Japanese hostages unless it receives a $200 million ransom within 72 hours, but Tokyo vowed today it would not give in to “terrorism”.IS has murdered five Western hostages since August last year, but it is the first time that the jihadist group-which has seized swathes of Syria and neighbouring Iraq-has threatened Japanese captives.In footage posted on jihadist websites, a black-clad militant brandishing a knife addresses the camera in English, standing between two hostages wearing orange jumpsuits.”You now have 72 hours to pressure your government into making a wise decision by paying the $200 million to save the lives of your citizens,” he says.The militant says that the ransom demand is to compensate for non-military aid that Prime Minister Shinzo Abe pledged to support countries affected by the campaign against IS during an ongoing Middle East tour that on Tuesday saw him in Jerusalem.But the Japanese government said it would not bow to extremism.”Our country’s stance-contributing to the fight against terrorism without giving in-remains unchanged,” chief government spokesman Yoshihide Suga told a news conference in Tokyo.An official in the foreign ministry’s terrorism prevention division had said earlier that the government was investigating the threat and the authenticity of the video.Since August, IS has murdered three Americans and two Britons, posting grisly video footage of their executions.US journalists James Foley and Steven Sotloff, American aid worker Peter Kassig and British aid workers Alan Henning and David Haines were all beheaded.
