IS executes second Japanese hostage

Final moments: A still from a video released by the IS showing Goto shortly before his execution. — EPA

TOKYO: The Islamic State (IS) group claimed in a video that it has beheaded a second Japanese hostage, drawing international condemnation and outrage from a visibly upset Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, who denounced it as a “heinous and despicable” act.

The apparent killing of 47-year-old Kenji 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 it has threatened to kill.