Video Released By Terrorist Group Shows Man In A Cage Being Set Afire

A video released Tuesday by Islamic State militants appears to show a Jordanian pilot who had been captured after his plane went down in Syria in December being burned alive in a cage. While it could not be confirmed that the man in the cage being set on fire was Mouath al-Kasaesbeh, the reaction from Jordanian authorities made it clear that they felt it was genuine.

Jordan has been participating in air strikes against Islamic State targets in Syria as part of a U.S.-led effort.

Reuters reports that Jordan has said it response would be "strong, earth-shaking, and decisive," according to a government spokesman.

Jordan had been attempting to swap the pilot for an Iraqi woman it has been holding in connection with a 2005 suicide bombing in Amann that killed 160 people, but had demanded proof that Kasaesbeh was alive. After the video was released, the Jordanian government said she would be "swiftly executed" along with several others it has been holding in response to the death of its pilot. Those executions were scheduled for Wednesday. "The revenge will be as big as the calamity that has hit Jordan," army spokesman Colonel Mamdouh al Ameri said in a televised statement.

The Guardian reports that before he was executed, Kasaesbeh had been forced to reveal the names and addresses of other Jordanian pilots. At the end of the 23 minute video showing his death, Islamic State showed photos of the other pilots, offering a bounty of about $20,000 for each one killed.

FMI: http://www.rjaf.mil.jo/