Relatives of Islamic State captive Jordanian pilot Muath al Kasaesbeh hold his portrait as they take part in a rally in his support at the family's headquarters in the city of Karak. PHOTO: REUTERS
The highly produced 22-minute video released online showed images of a man purported to be First Lieutenant Maaz al Kassasbeh, who was captured in December, engulfed in flames inside a metal cage.
Amman confirmed the death of the 26-year-old, while the video’s authenticity has still not been verified, and vowed an “earth-shattering” response.
The military warned that “the blood of the martyr will not have been shed in vain and... vengeance will be proportional to this catastrophe that has struck all Jordanians”.
State television said Kassasbeh had been killed January 3, before IS offered to spare his life and free a Japanese journalist in return for the release of a female would-be suicide bomber on death row in Jordan.
Published in The Express Tribune, February 4th, 2015.
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