Friends and family members of a Jordanian pilot being held by Islamic State said on Friday (January 30) they believe he is still alive. They gathered in capital Amman, seeking information about his fate, a day after the deadline passed for the release of an Iraqi prisoner in Jordan. An audio message purportedly from a Japanese journalist also captured by the insurgents said the pilot would be killed 'immediately' unless Jordan released Sajida al-Rishawi, who is on death row for her role in a 2005 suicide bomb attack that killed 60 people in Amman. Muath al-Kasaesbeh was captured after his jet crashed in northeastern Syria in December during a bombing mission against Islamic State.
