Numerous media outlets are reported that an American journalist who was missing for nearly two years has been beheaded by ISIS.
American freelance photo-journalist James Wright Foley, 40, was last seen in Syria on Thanksgiving Nov. 22, 2012 while working for Agence France-Presse.
Salon reports that “A video has surfaced purporting to depict American journalist James Wright Foley being beheaded by those who claim to be ISIS rebels.”
The video features text saying “Obama authorizes military operations against the Islamic State effectively placing America upon a slippery slope towards a new war front against Muslims.” It then cuts to a clip of Obama announcing airstrikes against ISIS and then to Foley kneeling in orange, next to a man wearing black with his face covered. In it, Foley is forced to read a letter urging Americans to rise up against his “real killer,” the “U.S. government.” I call on my friends, family and loved ones to rise up against my real killer, the U.S. government. What will happen to me is only a result of their complacency and criminality.”
Salon goes on to note that “[t]he video also shows a man on his knees who is allegedly Steven Sotloff, a freelance journalist who went missing in Syria on Aug. 3, 2013. According to the video, Sotloff’s fate depends on Obama’s ‘next decision.’”
According to the NY Post, “Foley was a freelance journalist when he was kidnapped in Syria. He’s originally from Rochester, New Hampshire. His family had set up website to plead for Foley’s return.
”We want Jim to come safely home, or at least we need to speak with him to know he’s okay,” family patriarch, John, wrote in a statement in 2013.
“Jim is an objective journalist and we appeal for the release of Jim unharmed. To the people who have Jim, please contact us so we can work together toward his release.”
The White House has not yet made any statements about the video, but the Daily Mail reports:
White House National Security Council spokeswoman Caitlin Hayden says the administration has seen the video.
She says that if it’s deemed genuine by the intelligence community, the US would be ‘appalled by the brutal murder of an innocent American journalist.’
Foley’s family is urging everyone to be patient through the Find James Foley Facebook page.
“We know that many of you are looking for confirmation or answers,” the Find James Foley Facebook wrote: “Please be patient until we all have more information, and keep the Foleys in your thoughts and prayers.”
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