US Military Tried But Failed To Free Foley

A US secret military mission had tried but failed to free US reporter
James Foley and other American hostages in Syria, US officials have
said.

Their comments come after a video of Foley's beheading by Islamic
State (IS) militants appeared on Tuesday.

IS said Foley's death was revenge for US air strikes on its fighters in Iraq.

US President Barack Obama condemned the killing as "an act of violence
that shocks the conscience of the entire world".

He compared IS militants, who control large parts of Syria and Iraq to
a "cancer" and said the group's ideology was "bankrupt".

The UN, UK and others have also expressed abhorrence at the video.

Mr Foley's mother Diane said he "gave his life trying to expose the
world to the suffering of the Syrian people".

The Committee to Protect Journalists said it was "extremely concerned
for all journalists" still held by IS, describing Syria as "the
world's most dangerous place to be a reporter".

In a statement on Wednesday, the Pentagon said the US had "attempted a
rescue operation recently to free a number of American hostages held
in Syria".

It said the operation "involved air and ground components and was
focused on a particular captor network within ISIL" (the former name
of IS).