New photo of Japan journalist ‘kidnapped by extremists’ appears

Jumpei Yasuda, who has been missing for almost a year, is seen holding a piece of paper with a handwritten message in Japanese that says: “Please help. This is the last chance. Jumpei Yasuda.”

A file photo of Japanese journalist Jumpei Yasuda, who has been missing for more than a year after being reportedly captured by extremist groups in Syria. Kyodo via Reuters

Tokyo // A new photo of a Japanese journalist who went missing in Syria last year has emerged online, showing the heavily bearded man holding a sign saying this is his “last chance”.

The photo, which received widespread coverage in Japanese media on Monday, shows freelance journalist Jumpei Yasuda, wearing an orange shirt, his hair and beard grown long.

Yasuda, who has been missing for almost a year, is seen holding a piece of paper with a handwritten message in Japanese that says: “Please help. This is the last chance. Jumpei Yasuda.”

Foreign minister Fumio Kishida said that the man shown in the image is likely Yasuda.

“The government is now analysing the image,” he said.

It was not clear when or where the image was taken, but it emerged after footage of Yasuda was posted online in March.

In the one-minute video, the bearded man wearing a black jumper with a scarf around his neck says in English: “Hello, I am Jumpei Yasuda. Today is my birthday, 16 March.”

The footage was posted online by Tarik Abdul Hak, who said it had been provided to him by a group called Al Noor, which he said “has been mandated by [the Al Qaeda-linked] Al Nusra to carry out a mediation for his release”.

NHK reported the same person had posted the new photo online.

Militants from the ISIL extremist group last year beheaded Japanese war correspondent Kenji Goto and his friend Haruna Yukawa.

The government in Tokyo was criticised for what detractors saw as its flat-footed response to the crisis at the time, including apparently missed opportunities to free both men.

Earlier this month, three Spanish journalists, who had been held hostage in Syria by an Al Qaeda-linked group, were released.

They shared part of their time in captivity with Yasuda, according to Spain’s Europa Press news agency, which did not cite any sources.

* Agence France-Presse