Secretary of State Kerry Meets With Jordanians Moments Before Release of Execution Video
He seemed unaware of the video released by ISIS.
— -- Less than an hour before the release earlier today of an ISIS execution video of a Jordanian national, Secretary of State John Kerry was holding meetings with King Abdullah of Jordan and the Foreign Minister in Washington D.C.
The entire time he appeared unaware of the video’s existence.
Immediately following his meeting with King Abdullah, Kerry mentioned in a signing ceremony with Jordan’s Foreign Minister that Jordan had yet to receive the proof of life they’d requested from ISIS.
"The people of Jordan need to know that all Americans will join with them in praying for the early and safe return of Lieutenant Mu'az al-Kasabeh and we call upon his captors to release this brave man so that he could return to his family and his homeland," Kerry said.
Foreign Minister Nasser Judeh appeared to be in good spirits during the ceremony, suggesting he too was unaware ISIS was about to release the horrifying video which purportedly shows the pilot being burned alive inside a metal cage.
It’s also worth noting that the verified twitter account of the Embassy of Jordan retweeted a message from the State Department reading: .@JohnKerry: People of #Jordan should know all Americans join with them in praying for early & safe return of Lieutenant Mu’az al-Kasasbeh.
The undated video of al-Kasasbeh’s apparent death comes just days after ISIS uploaded another video showing what appeared to be the decapitated head of a Japanese hostage, journalist Kenji Goto.
Last week the Jordanian government had offered to release an al Qaeda prisoner in exchange for al-Kasasbeh, but officials said ISIS failed to prove that the pilot was alive.