Here is a brief summary of the major events that have led up to the current hostage crisis involving Haruna Yukawa and Kenji Goto.
July 28: Haruna Yukawa, with the ambition of working as a private military contractor, returns to the Middle East.
Aug. 14: During a firefight between the Free Syrian Army and the extremist Islamic State group, Yukawa is kidnapped and a video of him being brutally interrogated is posted on the Internet.