By North America correspondent Ben Knight and staff Wednesday 20 August 2014
Photo: Islamic State claims to have beheaded American journalist James Foley. (Twitter)
Video: Ben Knight talks to News Breakfast from Washington (ABC News)
A video showing the beheading of an American journalist has been posted online, purporting to be a message to America from the terrorist group Islamic State (IS).
The high-resolution video shows a man believed to be James Foley, a freelance American journalist who has been missing since being kidnapped in Syria in 2012.
The video, titled "A message to America", shows the captive on his knees, dressed in an orange jumpsuit, next to a militant clad completely in black with his face covered.
In what appears to be a pre-prepared statement, Foley calls on his family to rise up against the United States, who he calls his "real killers".
"I call on my friends, family, and loved ones to rise up against my real killers, the US government, for what will happen to me is only a result of their complacency and criminality," he said.
"My message to my beloved parents, save me some dignity and don't accept any meagre compensation for my death from the same people who effectively hit the last nail in my coffin from their recent aerial campaign in Iraq."
He is then murdered by the militant clad in black, who, speaking in English with an English accent, warns the US to stop intervening in Iraq.
Since August 8, the US has launched about 70 air strikes targeting IS positions in northern Iraq.
The White House said it was working to verify the authenticity of the video and said that, if genuine, the US was "appalled".
Photo: James Foley went missing in Syria in 2012. (AFP: Nicole Tung)
A second prisoner, believed to be another American journalist, Steven Sotloff, also appears in the video, with a warning that he will be the next to die.
"The life of this American citizen, Obama, depends on your next decision," the masked man said.
The video appeared briefly on YouTube before it was removed and has not yet been verified.
An update on the Free James Foley Facebook page after the video was posted says: "We know that many of you are looking for confirmation or answers. Please be patient until we all have more information and keep the Foleys in your thoughts and prayers."
Foley, an experienced war reporter, was on his second trip to rebel-held Syria when he was seized by armed men on November 22, 2012.
He was travelling with another Western journalist and a Syrian assistant when they were intercepted near the town of Taftanaz in Idlib province.
In May 2013, GlobalPost, one of the news organisations Foley had worked for, reported he was being held in a Damascus prison run by Syrian Air Force Intelligence.
His parents, John and Diane Foley, of Rochester, New Hampshire, marked Foley's 40th birthday last year with a prayer vigil.
