ISIL demands $200m for Japanese hostages

ISIL has reportedly vowed to murder two Japanese hostages unless they are paid $200 million in 72 hours.

The terror group reportedly made the threat today.

The extremist group posted a video online that shows two hostages the militants name as Kenji Goto Jogo and Haruna Yukawa.

It is believed the militant speaking in the video is the British man known as "Jihadi John", who has executed several other ISIL hostages on camera.

Mr Yukawa, 42, was captured in Syria in August last year.

Formerly homeless, he was attempting to start a career as a security provider for Japanese countries in conflict hot spots throughout the world.

The British militant in the video says the Japanese were targeted because of the nation's financial support for Western military efforts against ISIL.

"You now have 72 hours to pressure your government into making a wise decision by paying the $200 million to save the lives of your citizens," he says.

The Japanese government said it would not bow to extremism.

"Our country's stance -- contributing to the fight against terrorism without giving in -- remains unchanged," chief government spokesman Yoshihide Suga told a news conference in Tokyo.

An official in the foreign ministry's terrorism prevention division had said earlier that the government was investigating the threat and the authenticity of the video.

Mr Yukawa appeared in previous footage posted last August in which he identified himself and was shown being roughly interrogated by his captors.

The second hostage - Kenji Goto - is a freelance journalist who set up a video production company, named Independent Press in Tokyo in 1996, feeding video documentaries on the Middle East and other regions to Japanese television networks, including public broadcaster NHK.

He was born in Sendai, Miyagki, in 1967, according to the company's website.