Japanese citizens beheaded

I get lots of Japanese news, in my blog feed and on Facebook, so I'm wondering how many of you have heard about the two Japanese hostages that have been executed by

Islamic State militants in the last couple of weeks. It's huge news in Japan.

Here was the early demand. It seems to have in part been provoked by a visit to the Middle East and announcement by the Prime Minister:

Abe said his announcement of $200 million in nonmilitary aid for the fight against the Islamic State group, made during a visit to the Middle East just days before the militants demanded a $200 million ransom for the two hostages, was meant to convey Japan’s strong commitment to battling terrorism and fostering peace and stability in the region.

The two who died were an aid worker and a journalist. Apparently the journalist was trying to rescue the aid worker. Additionally the journalist was a apparently a Christian.

Here is a short report from Christian Headlines.com and a longer one from Christianity Today.

I've just sent out a prayer letter today and asked people to pray for wisdom for the leaders of Japan. There is grief, anti war protests, and blame-laying. Abe wants to enable the military (aka Self Defense Force, because they have limited powers post WW2) to be able to rescue citizens.