The French Foreign Minister has confirmed the authenticity of the video of a French man said to be kidnapped by an Algerian armed group calling on France not to intervene in Iraq.
The armed group Caliphate Soldiers has pledged allegiance to the Islamic State and says it will kill the French national within 24 hours if France does not stop its intervention in Iraq.
The Frenchman Herve Gourdel said he arrived in Algeria last Saturday and was abducted a day later.
French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius says the situation is extremely critical.
"The Foreign ministry has just issued a statement confirming, sadly, the authenticity of the video that carries pictures of Herve Gourdel taken hostage in Algeria, on Sunday in the Tizi Ozou region. The threats from this terrorist group are extremely serious and are testimony once more of the extreme cruelty of this movement we call Islamic State and of all who support it."
Fabius says the French President has already met with the Algerian Prime Minister over the kidnapping.
The country also raised the threat level at 30 of its embassies across the Middle East and Africa.
France launched its first air attacks on Islamic State fighters last week, after joining the US-led coalition to fight against the group.
