The Islamic State terrorist group has threatened to kill 180 Assyrian Christians because its ransom demands have not been met.
According to The Christian Post, the Islamic State is demanding $12 million for the release of the hostages. The Assyrian community, however, does not have sufficient funds to pay this price.
Early in September, hopes were raised that the Islamic State might agree to lower their ransom price for the hostages.
Syrian Catholic Archbishop Jacques Behnan Hindo even stated, “Therefore, now, the biggest obstacle regarding the release of our Assyrian brothers is no longer money, but the difficulty of how to organize the phase of liberation.”
The Islamic State seems to have reverted back to its original ransom demands, however.
“The negotiations, led by Bishop Ephrem Otnaial, head of the Church of the East in Syria, have been suspended due to the unbearable demands of the terror group," said Osama Edward, director of the Assyrian Human Rights Network.
The 180 Assyrians are part of a group of 230 hostages kidnapped by the Islamic State in February in villages in the Khabur river valley in Syria.
Many are calling for the help of the international community to stop the Islamic State’s scourge of violence.
Just last week, the terrorist group released a video showing the brutal executions of three hostages.
"We plea and beg of the international community to intervene immediately," A Demand for Action spokesperson Diana Yaqco stated. "We have been driven out of our ancestral lands. We have been killed and crucified. The international community must act now to save lives of others kidnapped."
Publication date: October 12, 2015
