China confirms death of Chinese hostage
中国证实人质被杀害

China has confirmed the death of its national Fan Jinghui, who had been held hostage by the Islamic State, and says the criminals must be brought to justice.

In a statement, the Chinese Foreign Ministry says the government had been doing all it could to rescue Fan.

ISIL announced in its English-language magazine Dabiq that it had captured Chinese and Norwegian hostages, showing what appeared to be pictures of the dead men under a banner reading "Executed."

They identified the two as 50-year-old Fan, a freelance consultant, and 48-year-old Ole Johan Grimsgaard-Ofstad. The group did not specify when or where the two had been captured.

Norway's Prime Minister Erna Solberg told reporters Wednesday that Grimsgaard-Ofstad had most likely been killed, and condemned the murder.