Militants: Hostage killed in airstrike
BEIRUT – A statement attributed to Islamic State extremists claimed that an American woman held hostage by the group was killed on Friday, allegedly in a Jordanian airstrike on the militants’ stronghold of Raqqa in northern Syria.
The woman was identified as Kayla Jean Mueller, an American who went to Syria to do aid work, but the United States said it had no evidence of her death.
If Mueller’s death is confirmed, she would be the fourth American to die while in the captivity of the Islamic State militants.
Moscow talks on peace in Ukraine end
MOSCOW– A spokesman for Russian President Vladimir Putin says talks with Angela Merkel and François Hollande on a peace proposal for Ukraine have ended.
Dmitry Peskov said early Saturday that the next step in the process would be a telephone call between Putin, Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko and the German and French leaders on Sunday.
Associated Press
