Obama Says 'No Just God' Would Support Beheading Of Journalist James Foley

U.S. President Barack Obama spoke out on the purported beheading of American journalist James Foley by Islamic State militants, saying "no just god' would allow such a brutal killing to take place.

The president used strong words on Wednesday to condemn the Islamic State, saying the jihadist group's use of Islam to validate their actions is simply a veil to hide "cowardly acts of violence."

"[The Islamic State] speaks for no religion," Obama said at a press conference on Wednesday. "Their victims are overwhelmingly Muslim, and no faith teaches people to massacre innocents. No just god would stand for what they did yesterday and what they do every single day."

The president confirmed that the U.S. will not stop airstrikes on Islamic State militants in Iraq, describing the al-Qaeda offshoot as a "cancer" that must be stopped. In a video posted to YouTube on Tuesday, Islamic State militants purportedly filmed the grueseome beheading of American photojournalist James Foley, who was kidnapped by the militant group in eastern Syria in 2012.

The video shows Foley reciting threats to the U.S., and an Islamic State militant warning that if the U.S. does not stop its airstrikes of Islamic State convoys, more Americans will be murdered as a result. Another kidnapped journalist, Steven Sotloff, was also shown in the video, although he was not beheaded.

In response to the beheading of Foley, the photojournalist's mother, Diane, released a statement saying: "We have never been prouder of our son Jim. He gave his life trying to expose the world to the suffering of the Syrian people."

"We thank Jim for all the joy he gave us," the mother added. "He was an extraordinary son, brother, journalist and person."