A video posted on the Internet claims to show the bodies of at least some of the seven foreign hostages believed killed by Islamist extremist group Ansaru following their abduction in Nigeria. The grainy and silent video posted to YouTube and seen by AFP on Monday appears to show at least four of the seven victims who were abducted last month. The images match previous screenshots released at the weekend along with the claim that the hostages had been executed. The video is titled in Arabic "the death of the seven Christian hostages in Nigeria." mjs/txw

Britain, Italy and Greece on Sunday said that a claim by a Nigerian Islamist group that it had killed seven foreign hostages appeared to be true, while London denied it had sought to stage a rescue. Restive northern Nigeria has seen scores of people killed from Islamist-linked violence, but the hostage executions marked the deadliest kidnapping targeting foreigners in the region in recent memory.

Foreign Secretary William Hague said on Sunday that a Briton held hostage in Nigeria was "likely to have been killed at the hands of his captors" along with six other foreigners. He condemned the deaths, claimed by an Islamist group on Saturday, as "an act of cold-blooded murder" and said Britain would work with the Nigerian government to hold those responsible to account.

Foreign Secretary William Hague said on Sunday that a Briton held hostage in Nigeria was "likely to have been killed at the hands of his captors" along with six other foreigners. He condemned the deaths, claimed by an Islamist group on Saturday, as "an act of cold-blooded murder" and said Britain would work with the Nigerian government to hold those responsible to account.