MOSCOW, September 3 (RIA Novosti) - British Prime Minister David Cameron urged G8 countries on Wednesday to stick to their agreement and avoid paying ransoms to terrorists in return for the release of hostages.
"Britain continues with this policy, America continues with this policy but we need to redouble the efforts to make sure that other countries are good to their word," Cameron was quoted as saying by Reuters.
The tens of millions of pounds Islamic State (ISIS) militants have raised in ransom payments are undoubtedly going to promote and fund attacks that affect Britain, Cameron said.
During a meeting in June last year, the British Prime Minister convinced other G8 leaders to sign a communique rejecting payment of ransoms to terrorist groups. Giving in to kidnappers’ ultimatums strengthens their capability to organize and carry out attacks and incentivizes future cases of kidnapping for ransom, the communique states.
According to media reports, France, Italy and Germany have channeled money to terrorists in exchange for their citizens, despite the agreement.
Cameron’s statements come after a new ISIS video emerged on Tuesday, showing the beheading of a second US journalist, Steven Sotloff. At the end of the clip, the killer, who himself speaks with a London accent, parades an alleged British hostage and threatens to make him ISIS’s next victim.
The IS insurgent group, previously known as the Islamic State of Iraq and Greater Syria (ISIS), an al-Qaeda offshoot, has been fighting the Syrian government since 2012, acquiring a notorious reputation for its brutality.
In 2014, the organization launched an offensive on Iraq, capturing vast areas, including major cities and oilfields. In late June, the ISIS proclaimed an Islamic caliphate in its controlled areas.
