A video has appeared on the internet showing the first pictures of BBC correspondent Alan Johnston since his abduction in Gaza on 12 March.It is said to have been posted by the Army of Islam, the group that says it is holding the reporter.
In the video, Mr Johnston says he is in good health and that his captors have treated him well.
The BBC said it was studying the video carefully and repeated its call for the immediate release of Mr Johnston.
A UK Foreign Office spokesman said it was also investigating the contents of the video "to judge the implications for Alan Johnston's safe release".
Mr Johnston, 45, was seized nearly 12 weeks ago in Gaza City on his way home.
Abu Qatada
It is unclear when the video, which has appeared on the al-Ekhlaas website, was recorded.
Mr Johnston says: "First of all, my captors have treated me very well... They have fed me well, there has been no violence towards me at all and I'm in good health."
Mr Johnston, seated and wearing a red sweatshirt, calls for an end to Western sanctions that have been imposed on the Palestinian government.
He talks of the "huge suffering" of the Palestinian people, saying: "Everyday there are Palestinians arrested, imprisoned for no reason. People are killed on a daily basis. The economic suffering is terrible, especially here in Gaza."
He also says the British government is working to occupy Muslim lands against the will of the people there.
Mr Johnston refers to the "failed invasion of Iraq by America and Britain" and the "terrible" situation in Afghanistan.
Mr Johnston refers to the "failed invasion of Iraq by America and Britain" and the "terrible" situation in Afghanistan.
At the end of the video, Mr Johnston begins a message to his family, saying, "to my family, to my family..." but the audio is then cut off.
On the tape, the Army of Islam demand the release of Abu Qatada, a Palestinian-born Islamic cleric who is suspected of close links to al-Qaeda and is currently held by the UK government as a threat to national security.
In early May, the same group released a videotape showing Mr Johnston's BBC identity card and making the same demand for the release of Abu Qatada, but there has been virtually no other news about the reporter.
The BBC issued a statement on Friday saying the corporation had been "working very closely with Alan's family for the past 81 days".
It read: "This is a highly distressing time for them and for his friends and his colleagues. We repeat our call for his immediate release."
Senior Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erekat again called for the unconditional and immediate release of Mr Johnston and said that all Palestinians stood behind him.
"There is not a house in Gaza that does not have a picture of Alan Johnston," he said.
Mr Johnston was the only Western reporter permanently based in Gaza and his abduction has triggered appeals for his release from lawmakers and rights groups around the world.
More than 130,000 people have now signed an online petition calling for his release.
ALAN JOHNSTON PETITION
More than 100,000 people have written to the BBC to demand Alan Johnston's release
ARMY OF ISLAM FACTS
Small, Islamist armed group operating in GazaSplinter group of the Popular Resistance Committees
Seeks liberation of Palestine and an Islamic state
Influenced by, but not affiliated with, al-Qaeda
Led by Mumtaz Dugmush, also known as Abu Muhammad, a member of a powerful clan
One of three groups allegedly holding captured Israeli soldier Cpl Gilad Shalit
Courtesy from BBC
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