Japan government confirms body is Japanese hostage

TOKYO (AFP) - The Japanese government has confirmed that a head and body found in Baghdad are the remains of Japanese hostage Shosei Koda, the foreign minister said.
Koda, 24, was threatened with beheading by Islamic militants in a video released on the Internet late Tuesday if Japan did not withdraw its troops from Iraq within 48 hours. Japan had refused the demand.
"Unfortunately we have confirmed that the body is that of Shosei Koda," Foreign Minister Nobutaka Machimura told a news conference.
"We deeply regret that he has become a victim of terrorism," Machimura said. "We express our deep condolences to his family."
The decapitated body was found near Haifa Street in a notorious area in the centre of the capital on Saturday, said colonel Adnan Abdul Rahman, a spokesman for the Iraqi interior ministry.
Iraqi officials said the head and body was found wrapped in a US flag. The hands and feet of the corpse had been tied and there were two bullet wounds, a police officer said.

10/31/2004 - 01:48 GMT - AFP