ammonnews.net

Ammon News - AMMONNEWS - Foreign Minister Nasser Judeh said on Wednesday evening Jordan was still waiting for news on the fate of its pilot captured by the so-called Islamic State (IS) terrorist group since December 24, noting that the government started negotiations through third parties to win his freedom some weeks earlier.

In an interview with CNN late Wednesday, Judeh said it was IS, also known by its Arabic acronym, Daesh, that linked the fates of pilot Muath Kasasbeh with that of Japanese hostage Kenji Goto earlier this week.

The minister said Jordan, if possible, would help include the Japanese hostage in the deal, but explained that priority goes to the Jordanian.

“We are cooperating very closely with our Japanese friends and allies and it is ISIS, Daesh, that has tied the fate of the two captives together,” Judeh said.

“They are the ones who have said that the lives of the pilot and the Japanese captive for the exchange of this woman,” Judeh added, in reference to convicted terrorist Sajida Rishawi, whose release was demanded by Daesh on Tuesday in return for the freedom of the Japanese hostage. In a videotape released by the group, it gave the Jordanian government 24 hours to free Rishawi or have the Jordanian and Japanese hostages killed.

On Wednesday morning, the government announced it was ready to free Rishawi in return for the release of Kasasbeh, who was captured when his plane went down in the Syrian city of Raqqa during an operation against Daesh as part of an international anti-terrorism coalition.

The 24-hour deadline passed Wednesday afternoon with no news from the group.

“Now the deadline has passed, and I do not want to pass judgement on whether this is encouraging news or not,” Judeh told CNN.

“We have said publicly that we are willing to exchange this woman for the release of our pilot,” he said.

He also added that the government’s request for a proof of life for Kasasbeh was not answered.

Judeh said “although many Jordanians would like to see Rishawi locked up for the rest of her life, she didn’t actually commit any murder herself”.

Rishawi was part of a cell of four people who conducted the Amman hotel bombings in November 9, 2005, or what the minister termed as Jordan’s September 11, killing 60 innocent Jordanian civilians.

Rishawi entered one of the targeted hotels with her husband and pulled the trigger but her explosive belt did not detonate. Her husband’s did, killing scores of people celebrating at a wedding party.

Judeh emphasised that Jordan’s priority now is not Rishawi, but the safety of the pilot and getting him home safe and sound.

The minister explained that like any country in the region and the world, Jordan is entitled to have a prisoner exchange to save the life of its hostage.

He added that this would in no way mean any change in Jordan’s resolve to fight terrorism and extremism.

“We are committed when it comes to fighting extremism and terrorism, and this doesn’t change our resolve one single iota,” he emphasised.

The fight against Daesh, said the minister, stems from the country’s “strong and firm belief that terrorism and extremism have nothing to do with our noble religion nor with its essence”.

In reply to a question on whether the decision to exchange prisoners was taken under pressure exerted by Kasasbeh’s family over the past days, the minister reiterated that negotiations through third parties to win the freedom of the pilot started weeks ago.

He said the parents of Kasasbeh have all the right to express their pain and anger.

But after all, “this is war… and in any war you have the good days and the bad days”.

“A father is a father, a mother is a mother. Like I said they have every right to feel the pain and anguish and to express their anger,” he said.

*CNN