Japanese PM stands firm on hostage demand
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Japan&#39;s prime minister today refused to bend to demands by militants who have taken a Japanese civilian hostage in Iraq and threatened to behead him unless Tokyo withdraws its soldiers.
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The deadline set by Islamic militants to behead a Japanese hostage in Iraq unless Tokyo pulled its army out of the country expired with no fresh news of the young man's fate.
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A group led by al Qaeda ally Abu Musab  al-Zarqawi threatened to behead a Japanese hostage in Iraq  unless Japan withdrew its troops, but Prime Minister Junichiro  Koizumi said on Wednesday that Japan's contingent would stay.
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Japan has made last-ditch efforts to secure the release of a Japanese hostage facing execution in Iraq. A Japanese government official says efforts are still being made to free Shosei Koda, 24, but there have been no reports of any progress.
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Japan sought international and Iraqi help  for a Japanese man held hostage in Iraq on Thursday, less than  24 hours before a deadline set by his captors to behead him  unless Japan withdraws its troops.
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Prime Minister John Howard said Tuesday that he would not withdraw troops from Iraq as demanded by militants who claim to have taken two Australians hostage and threatened to execute them within 24 hours.
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Japan today refused to withdraw its troops from Iraq despite demands by Iraqi militants who have taken a Japanese civilian hostage and threatened to behead him unless the soldiers left.
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TOKYO -- Japan's nationalist prime minister denied yesterday that the country's military forced women into sexual slavery during World War II, casting doubt on a past government apology and jeopardizing a fragile detente with his Asian neighbors.
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Prime Minister John Howard has stood firm against withdrawing troops from Iraq after unconfirmed reports that two Australians have been taken hostage and would be killed within 24 hours unless Canberra pulls out.
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Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi on Sunday condemned the beheading of a young Japanese backpacker in Iraq and vowed that Japan would not withdraw its troops from the US-led coalition.
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Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi said Wednesday that the Bank of Japan&#039;s embattled chief should stay on despite calls for his resignation amid an investment scandal, Kyodo News agency reported.
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Tokyo: Japan said on Friday it had not given up hope for a Japanese hostage in Iraq after a report he may have been killed, as the 24-year-old&#39;s mother pleaded to Islamic militants to spare him.
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Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe refused to back down Monday in a row over whether the military used Asian women as sex slaves during World War II, repeating that there was no evidence of coercion.
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BAGHDAD, Iraq - Japanese leaders on Sunday insisted they would not cut short their troopsâ deployment in Iraq despite the discovery of the body of a Japanese backpacker killed by Islamic militants.
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Japan insisted it would not bow to the demands of Islamic militants in Iraq who threatened to behead a young Japanese unless Tokyo withdraws its troops from the country within 48 hours.
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Japan's prime minister, a staunch U.S. ally in Iraq, refused on Wednesday to withdraw Japan's troops from the country, taking a tough stance in the face of demands by militants threatening to behead a Japanese hostage unless the soldiers leave.
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Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi said Wednesday Japanese troops would not pull out of Iraq, rejecting a demand by Islamic militants claiming to have taken a Japanese hostage.