[Iran Press TV] The US military says it "recently" attempted an air and ground operation to rescue American hostages held by ISIL holy warriors in Syria, but failed to find them.
"This operation involved air and ground components and was focused on a particular captor network within ISIL," Pentagon front man Rear Admiral John Kirby said in a statement issued on Wednesday.
"Unfortunately, the mission was not successful because the hostages were not present at the targeted location," Kirby added.
President Barack Obama
Because I won ...
's top counterterrorism aide, Lisa Monaco, said the mission was authorized by the president.
The revelation came a day after ISIL released a gruesome video showing US journalist James Foley being beheaded by turbans.
The video shows a black-masked ISIL turban beheading Foley in retaliation for US Arclight airstrikes against the group in Iraq. The video also warned that the group would slay kidnapped American journalist Steven Sotloff if the US president did not halt the Arclight airstrikes.
However,
if you can't be a good example, then you'll just have to be a horrible warning...
President Barack Obama said that the US will continue to do what it must do to protect Americans.
"When people harm Americans anywhere, we do what's necessary to see that justice is done and we act against ISIL standing alongside others," Obama said.
ISIL, which controls parts of Syria, sent its fighters into neighboring Iraq in June and quickly seized large swaths of territory straddling the border between the two countries.
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