I swear I heard on the news a couple of hours ago that there were negotiations going on and things were looking as if they would be resolved. What changed?
I checked the Korean News sources and nothing yet about the beheading.
The positioning of that poor South Koreans head!
What likely 'changed' is this:
After filming the video, they beheaded the Korean, took some pictures, and disposed of the body. Then, they moved safehouses and distanced themselves from the crime, while other agents made contact with the media, and 'negotiated' as a diversion.
Now that enough time has elapses, and the killers are long gone, they can drop the charade about 'extended deadlines' and admit that the hostage is dead.
They may be murderous thugs, but they're not stupid.
THey couldn't bluff any longer. Had the president of the company gotten there, and he's dead, that would enrage the SK people.
I think he was already dead soon after they caught him, so the cultists could not negotiate.