The video, in which an Austrian man claims his kidnappers will kill him unless unidentified ransom demands are met, was reportedly released on the video sharing site You Tube last Thursday.
The man was later identified as the young man who was abducted along with a Finnish couple in Yemen last December.
Yle spoke with Yemen researcher Susanne Dahlgren, who said that it was interesting that the man in the video spoke only of himself, although he had been kidnapped with the Finnish couple.
“At least the video indicates that the hostages have apparently been split up. This raises the question of where the Finns are, “ Dahlgren noted on Yle’s Aamu TV breakfast programme.
“I would also think that the hostage takers have decided that this gives them two sets of trump cards. It means there may be separate demands for the Finns,” she added.
The researcher said that it is confusing that the man speaks of being abducted by a tribe, but that the style of the video is borrowed from Islamist hostage videos. She said the video does not give any hints as to who is behind the kidnappings.
“Dahlgren said that she had expected this kind of video to appear during the two months since the hostages were taken.
“Of course it was expected that there would come some sign that the hostages are alive. Usually kidnappers signal much earlier who is behind the case and what their demands are,” she added.
“The good thing is that the Austrian appears to be in very good health,” Dahlgren concluded.
