Jordan Responds To ISIS Killing Of Pilot; Fate Of American Hostage Unclear

Islamic State of Iraq and Syria militants burned a captured Jordanian pilot to death in a cage, according to a purported video of the violence released Tuesday. The kingdom, which had vowed a swift and lethal response, executed two al Qaeda prisoners by hanging early Wednesday. The pilot's gruesome death sparked outrage and anti-ISIS demonstrations in Jordan and outrage elsewhere in the Middle East. The video emerged after a week-long drama over a possible prisoner exchange for a female al Qaeda operative imprisoned in Jordan. She was one of the two prisoners executed. The Jordanian military confirmed the death of 26-year-old Lt. Muath Al-Kaseasbeh, who was captured by the extremists in December when his F-16 crashed while he was flying a mission as part of the U.S.-led air campaign against ISIS. He was the first airman participating in the U.S.-led bombing raids against militant positions in Syria and Iraq to be captured. In Washington, Jordan's King Abdullah II and President Obama vowed in a hastily arranged White House meeting not to let up in the fight against ISIS. Jordan, a staunch Western ally, is a member of the coalition. In a first response to the killing of the pilot, Jordan executed Sajida al-Rishawi and Ziad al-Karbouly, two Iraqis linked to al Qaeda, government spokesman Mohammed al-Momani said. Another official said they were executed by hanging.Jordan's U.N. Ambassador, Dina Kawar, who has been vocal at the U.N. about the fight against ISIS, tweeted the message that the government was conveying to its own people: "Today as ever Jordan stands united, strong & determined. Those who are still wondering who the enemy is, got to see them first hand," reports CBS News' Pamela Falk.

In Egypt, the head of Sunni Islam's most respected seat of learning expressed outrage over ISIS' purported burning to death of the Jordanian pilot, calling for the killing, crucifixion or chopping off the limbs of the militants.

Ahmed al-Tayeb, the Grand Sheik of Cairo's Al-Azhar Mosque, said the Islamic State group militants deserved such Quran-prescribed punishment because they were in effect fighting God and his Prophet Muhammad.

A statement from al-Tayeb released late Tuesday said that by burning Lt. Muath Al-Kaseasbeh to death, militants violated Islam's prohibition on the mutilation of bodies, even at wartime.

Via cbsnews.com

Via cbsnews.com