New ISIS video shows beheading of Japanese Kenji Goto

Islamic State (IS) militants have released a video online purporting to show that the Japanese hostage, Kenji Goto, was beheaded.

The 67-second-long video, released on January 31st, is called A Message to the Government of Japan. It shows Kenji Goto, wearing an orange outfit, being beheaded by a militant with a British accent, known as “Jihadi John”.

Japan says it is working to confirm the video’s authenticity. Kenji Goto’s beheading, if confirmed, comes less than a week following the beheading of another Japanese hostage, Haruna Yukawa.

The video came after Japanese officials said efforts by Japan and Jordan to secure the release of two of their nationals captured by IS were “deadlocked”.

Kenji Goto, a Japanese journalist, was held captive along with Jordanian pilot Muaz al-Kasasbeh by IS. The militants had threatened to behead the pilot unless a would-be suicide bomber being held on death row in Amman was handed over by sunset on Thursday. Jordan then demanded “proof of life”, and negotiations were left at a stand-still.

There was no further communication from IS after the deadline passed until the newly-released video on Kenji Goto’s beheading surfaced. Jordan and Japan have been reportedly having indirect negotiations with the IS through Iraqi tribal leaders. Japan’s chief cabinet secretary Yoshihide Suga later described efforts to secure the release of the Japanese hostage as an “extremely tough situation”.