ニュース 2015/01/21 DPJ convenes liaison committee regarding Japanese captured in Syria On January 21, following an announcement from a group purporting to be ISIL (the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant) in which they threatened to execute two Japanese captives, the DPJ convened an Information Liaison Committee on Japanese Citizens Held Captive in Syria (tentative translation). DPJ Diet members heard a recap of events and an outline of the current situation from government bureaucrats, as well as an explanation of the actions presently being taken by the Japanese administration, and then asked questions regarding the incident and the ongoing response. DPJ President Katsuya Okada commented to reporters following the meeting, saying, “We received an explanation of the background to the incident and the current situation from the government side. This is a truly despicable act, and I feel a strong sense of outrage towards the criminals responsible for committing it. What is important is to protect the lives of these two people, and I urged the government to make this their top priority and use every means at their disposal to help them. The DPJ will provide the impetus to ensure that the government is acting in an appropriate manner.”