PALESTINIAN-ISRAEL-JAPAN-DIPLOMACY-ABE

Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas (R) welcomes Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe at the Palestinian Authority's headquarters in the West Bank city of Ramallah on January 20, 2015. Abe demanded in a press conference in Jerusalem before heading to the West Bank that the Islamic State group, which controls swathes of territory in Iraq an Syria, immediately free two Japanese hostages unharmed after the jihadists posted a video threat to kill them unless Tokyo pays a $200 million ransom within 72 hours to compensate for non-military aid that Abe pledged to support the campaign against IS during an ongoing Middle East. AFP PHOTO/ABBAS MOMANI (Photo credit should read ABBAS MOMANI/AFP via Getty Images)