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Islamic State Video Appears to Show Jordanian Pilot Being Burned Alive
An image of Muath al-Kaseasbeh from the video purportedly showing him bur(Image via Twitter)

Islamic State Video Appears to Show Jordanian Pilot Being Burned Alive

• Lt. Muath al-Kaseasbeh was captured by the Islamic State in December. • The jihadist group's video, purportedly showing Kaseasbeh being burned alive, was released Tuesday, but Jordan claims pilot was killed as early as Jan. 3.• U.S. President Barack Obama called the video "just one more indication of the viciousness and barbarity of this organization."• Jordan has pushed up the execution of six imprisoned jihadist's in retribution for Kaseasbeh's killing.

The Islamic State released a video Tuesday purportedly showing the gruesome killing of Jordanian air force pilot Lt. Muath al-Kaseasbeh.

In the video, Kaseasbeh appears to be burned alive.

The government of Jordan confirmed that the pilot had been killed and vowed "punishment and revenge" on the Islamic State, slating imprisoned jihadists for accelerated execution in response.

The 22-minute video, titled “Healing of the Believers’ Chests,” appears to show Kaseasbeh locked in a cage and set ablaze, the Washington Post reported, citing a press release from SITE intelligence.

The video's release comes three days after another online video showed the apparent beheading of Japanese journalist Kenji Goto.

Images from the purported Kaseasbeh slaying video spread quickly across social media Tuesday, with pro-Islamic State Twitter accounts writing "Allah Akbar" messages along with the images.

Journalist Zaid Benjamin tweeted images from the purported killing.

Jordan last week agreed to free an Al Qaeda prisoner in return for Kaseasbeh, but never received proof that he was still alive.

A Jordanian child holds a candle and carries a poster with a picture of Jordanian pilot, Lt. Muath al-Kaseasbeh. The Islamic State released a video on Tuesday purportedly showing the pilot being burned alive. (AP Photo/Nasser Nasser)

On Tuesday, Jordanian state TV confirmed Kaseasbeh's death and claimed the pilot had been killed a month prior on Jan. 3, Fox News reported.

The Daily Mail reported that Jordan will executive six imprisoned jihadists, including failed female failed suicide bomber Sajida al-Rishawi, Wednesday morning in retribution.

BuzzFeed News reported that tweets showing images from the purported execution appear to be geo-tagged to Raqqa, the de facto capital of the Islamic State in northern Syria.

In remarks televised Tuesday afternoon, U.S. President Barack Obama said the video demonstrated the Islamic State's focus on "death and destruction" and revealed how the Islamic State's ideology is "bankrupt."

"Should in fact this video be authentic it's just one more indication of the viciousness and barbarity of this organization," he said.

King Abdullah of Jordan was in Washington Tuesday, and reports surfaced Tuesday that he would cut short his U.S. visit and return to Jordan following the news of the video's release.

As news of the purported killing hit the world, many journalists, Jordanians and Muslims tweeted anti-Islamic State messages of anger and sadness, accompanied by the hashtag "WeAreAllMaaz[Muath]" in Arabic.

This story has been updated.

Follow Zach Noble (@thezachnoble) on Twitter

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