AMMAN, Jordan—The Jordanian parliament issued a stern warning on Thursday as relatives pleaded with Islamic State (IS) militants holding a Jordanian pilot captive.
Jordan’s lower house of parliament threatened of “grave consequences” if the extremists harm Lt. Muath Kasaesbeh, 26, whose F-16 crashed on Wednesday near the IS stronghold of Raqqah in northeastern Syria.
The statement supported Jordan’s role in the US-led coalition waging an air campaign against IS in Syria and Iraq, and urged the government of King Abdullah II to “do its utmost to ensure a safe return of the pilot.”
Prime Minister Abdullah Ensour announced at a news conference in the pilot’s hometown south of the capital that international negotiations had begun to save Kasaesbeh’s life, but he did not elaborate.
The king met on Wednesday with the pilot’s family. His wife, Queen Rania, posted a message of support on Instagram: a Jordanian flag shaped like a fighter jet with the hashtag “We are all Muath.”
Kasaesbeh, one of eight children, has been a pilot for six years, and was married in July. On Thursday his father pleaded for his release, appealing to his captors as fellow Muslims.
“I direct a message to our generous brothers of the Islamic State in Syria: to host my son, the pilot Muath, with generous hospitality,” Safi al-Kasaesbeh said. “I ask God that their hearts are gathered together with love, and that he is returned to his family, wife and mother. We are all Muslims.”
The Sunni militants claimed to have shot down the plane with an antiaircraft missile and posted photographs of Kasaesbeh being led away, partially clothed and bleeding. They did not release new information on Thursday.
The US military said evidence “clearly indicates” that the militants did not shoot down the F-16.
“We can say with certainty that it was an aircraft crash and the plane was not downed by ISIL [Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant] as was claimed by the terrorist organization,” said Carl Hudson, a spokesman for US Central Command, using an acronym for the group.
A Jordanian military official also told Petra state news agency on Thursday that although the exact cause of the crash was still unknown, the plane was not downed by IS fire.
But the pilot’s relatives said that the Jordanian government told them the plane was downed by a missile.
Younes Kasaesbeh said the family was told by the Jordanian government that his nephew was flying at 400 feet on a bombing mission when his plane was struck by a heat-seeking missile and crashed in the Euphrates River.
Three other pilots wanted to rescue him but were afraid he might be killed because he had already fallen into enemy hands, and so they were ordered to return home, the uncle said.
Image credits: AP/Raad Adayleh