TOKYO/ISTANBUL—A Japanese journalist held hostage by Islamist militants after being captured in Syria three years ago has been released and would be brought home as soon as possible, Japan’s foreign minister said on Oct. 24.
Japanese diplomats in Turkey confirmed the released man was Jumpei Yasuda, a 44-year-old freelancer who was reported to have been captured by an al-Qaeda affiliate after entering Syria from Turkey in 2015.
