Jordanian king, Obama to meet

Jordan's King Abdullah II will meet with US President Barack Obama after horrific video was released of the IS murder of a Jordanian fighter pilot.

US President Barack Obama will host Jordan's King Abdullah II, in a hastily arranged meeting just hours after a video emerged of a caged Jordanian pilot being burned alive by the Islamic State group.

The White House said Obama would welcome the king to the Oval Office at 6pm on Tuesday (1000 Wednesday AEDT) as Islamic State militants drew international condemnation for killing the 26-year-old Maaz al-Kassasbeh.

Kassasbeh was captured in December when his F-16 jet crashed over northern Syria, a mission that was part of the US-led coalition campaign against the jihadists.

Obama earlier decried the "cowardice and depravity" of the Islamic State, saying the brutal killing would only strengthen international resolve to destroy the extremists.

The White House would not speculate on whether the video was released to coincide with Abdullah's visit to Washington, where he was not scheduled to meet Obama.

The president said First Lieutenant Kassasbeh's "dedication, courage and service to his country" represented "universal human values that stand in opposition to the cowardice and depravity of ISIL".

"Today, we join the people of Jordan in grieving the loss of one of their own," the president added, as his administration reaffirmed its intention to give Jordan $US3 billion ($A3.85 billion) in security aid over the next three years.

"As we grieve together, we must stand united, respectful of his sacrifice to defeat this scourge," Obama said after the latest in a wave of grizzly filmed murders.

Jordanian state television said that Kassasbeh was killed on January 3.

The slaying would redouble international commitment to ensure the Islamic State group "are degraded and ultimately defeated", said Obama.

Islamic State had offered to spare Kassasbeh's life and free a Japanese journalist in return for the release of a female would-be suicide bomber on death row in Jordan.

Jordanian officials announced the female bomber and other jihadists would be executed on Wednesday.


Share

2 min read

Published

Updated



Share this with family and friends


Get SBS News daily and direct to your Inbox

Sign up now for the latest news from Australia and around the world direct to your inbox.

By subscribing, you agree to SBS’s terms of service and privacy policy including receiving email updates from SBS.

Download our apps
SBS News
SBS Audio
SBS On Demand

Listen to our podcasts
An overview of the day's top stories from SBS News
Interviews and feature reports from SBS News
Your daily ten minute finance and business news wrap with SBS Finance Editor Ricardo Gonçalves.
A daily five minute news wrap for English learners and people with disability
Get the latest with our News podcasts on your favourite podcast apps.

Watch on SBS
SBS World News

SBS World News

Take a global view with Australia's most comprehensive world news service
Watch the latest news videos from Australia and across the world