Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan told Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe Tuesday that Turkey would exert efforts to end ordeal of two Japanese nationals, held hostage by the Islamic State in Iraq and Levant (ISIL).
Erdogan, in a phone call with Abe, said Turkey was interested in this issue, and that his country was ready to share intelligence to free the two Japanese hostages, Anadolu news agency said.
A video was released today showing ISIL members threatening to kill two Japanese hostages within 72 hours.
The video showed a masked militant, dressed in black, with two hostages, identified as Haruna Yukawa and Kenji Goto Jogo.
The militant said the two hostages will be killed unless the Japanese government pays a USD 200 million ransom in the next 72 hours.
Meanwhile, Erdogan and Abe discussed preparations for the G20 summit, due in Turkey this year.