Benjamin Netanyahu Sends Condolences to Japanese Counterpart on ISIS Murders
Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe Image by Getty Images
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu sent condolences to his Japanese counterpart, Shinzo Abe, on the murders of two Japanese citizens by the Islamic State.
“These loathsome acts of murder by ISIS are a chilling reminder of the need for all free nations to join hands in an uncompromising battle against the Islamist terrorism that is plaguing the Middle East and the entire world,” Netanyahu wrote in his letter to Abe sent Sunday.
The Islamic State announced Saturday in a video released online that it had beheaded Japanese journalist Kenji Goto. Haruna Yukawa, a Japanese aid worker who had been held by the Islamic State, was shown killed in a video released by the group last week.
The videos showed the black-garbed, British-accented executioner featured in other ISIS videos standing next to his Japanese victims, who were dressed in orange prison jumpsuits.
On Sunday in Tokyo, Abe said, “We will never forgive terrorists. We will cooperate with the international community to make them atone for their crimes.”
Abe was visiting Israel last month when the Islamic State announced it was holding the two Japanese men hostage and demanded a $200 million ransom. The Japanese prime minister at the time called it “an unacceptable act of terrorism.”
I hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, I’d like to ask you to please support the Forward’s award-winning, nonprofit journalism during this critical time.
Now more than ever, American Jews need independent news they can trust, with reporting driven by truth, not ideology. We serve you, not any ideological agenda.
At a time when other newsrooms are closing or cutting back, the Forward has removed its paywall and invested additional resources to report on the ground from Israel and around the U.S. on the impact of the war, rising antisemitism and the protests on college campuses.
Readers like you make it all possible. Support our work by becoming a Forward Member and connect with our journalism and your community.
Make a gift of any size and become a Forward member today. You’ll support our mission to tell the American Jewish story fully and fairly.
— Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Publisher and CEO
Join our mission to tell the Jewish story fully and fairly.
