Arab ambassadors to Japan released a joint statement condemning the murder of Haruna Yukawa by Islamic State militants and urging the immediate release of the group's other Japanese hostage, Kenji Goto.
"The Council of Arab Ambassadors accredited to Japan would like to condemn in the strongest terms and express outrage over the brutal murder of a Japanese hostage committed by the so-called Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant," said the statement, which was released on Tuesday.
The council, represented by 20 ambassadors and heads of mission from countries including Iraq, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Syria and Jordan, and the Palestinian Authority, declared their outrage that "such a barbaric act" was committed in the name of Islam and its noble values that prohibit "the killing of the innocent . . . and call for the protection of captives."