A video posted online on Tuesday showed a masked militant apparently from the Islamic State threatened to kill two Japanese citizens unless Japan paid the hostage-takers US$200 million in three days.

The clip identified the two kidnap victims as private security provider Haruna Yukawa and freelance journalist Kenji Goto. Reports said a local armed group captured Yukawa in August.

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The video shows a masked man talking in British-accent English flanked by two kneeling hostages in orange overalls. The footage could be seen on websites linked to the Islamic State' al-Furqan media arm.

The masked speaker tells the Japanese they have 72 hours to have their government pay the ransom to save the lives of the two hostages. Pulling out a knife, the man said the sharp object would become their nightmare.

The ransom demand footage made the rounds, as Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe was about to wrap up a six-day visit to the Middle East. Abe pledged to save the kidnap victims. He also pledged some US$200 million in aid to governments in the Middle East - Israel, Jordan, Egypt and the Palestinian territories.

In the video, the masked militant said the ransom must be paid because the Japanese leader offered US$100 million to help kill "our women and children" and help take down Muslim homes. He said a pledge of another US$100 million would support an attempt to contain the Islamic State.

In Israel, Abe expressed anger over the threats, adding it is "intolerable" to take hostages. He said the hostages' lives are top priority and he sought their immediate release.

The prime minister plans to send Japan's foreign affairs minister, Yasuhide Nakayama, to Jordan to seek help in resolving the crisis. He said Tel Aviv is sharing intelligence data to aid in the hostage crisis.

In Japan, Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga ruled out giving in to threats, saying the video's authenticity is being investigated. Suga said Abe has ordered him to make saving the hostages a "top priority."

TagsISIS, Japanese hostages, $200 million, ransom, Haruna Yukawa, Kenji Goto, ISIS video