Decapitation

ISIL claimed the beheading of a British aid worker, an act slammed as "pure evil" by Prime Minister David Cameron who vowed Britain would do all it could to catch the killers.

Foley execution rocks regional media

War correspondents in region cite a deteriorating press situation in the Middle East following the execution of US journalist James Foley.

The release of the videotaped beheading of an abducted US photojournalist by a masked Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) jihadist sent shockwaves around the world.

Public executions, amputations, lashings and mock crucifixion are a regular fixture in jihadist-controlled areas of Syria, a UN probe charged Wednesday, also accusing Damascus of repeatedly using chemical weapons against civilians.
      

British Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond on Wednesday voiced his "absolute horror" at the apparent beheading of US journalist James Foley, which he said showed the "brutality" of Islamic State jihadists.
      
Hammond said the executioner in the beheading video appeared to be British and work was under way to verify his background.