A video has been released online showing the alleged beheading of an American journalist by a member of the jihadist group Islamic State of Iraq and Syria. At first, people thought it was a hoax and was only meant to stir the US to deliver a message to stop taking part in the Middle East conflict. Later, several major newswires like CNN and BBC confirmed it was true.
In the video, which is no longer available on YouTube (but may have already been downloaded by those who saw it early), US journalist James Foley was seen to be wearing an orange jumpsuit in a sandy desert with an unidentified ISIS member. Online accounts of those who watched the video called the contents "gruesome" and "horrifying," as it reportedly showed the actual act of beheading. ISIS has been said to be almost equal to the Al-Qaeda and is one of the most dangerous jihadist movements in history.
The hashtag
#JamesFoley trended on Twitter immediately after the news broke out, generating as many as 4,900 tweets and 8.1 million?impressions in its first hour alone. As of this writing, or 11 hours after the news broke on social media, the hashtag has amassed 36,800 tweets and 147 million impressions. A greater volume of tweets are expected over the next hours or even days, as the probe into the incident deepens.
There remains no final confirmation of what really happened to Mr Foley, who has been reported missing (kidnapped by militant groups in the Middle East) since 2012. Foley is a correspondent for the online news service GlobalPost.
Foley's family has asked the public to stop sharing the video, if they have it, in respect to the fallen journalist.
Courtesy of Hashtags.org Analytics
Courtesy of Hashtags.org Analytics
Courtesy of Hashtags.org Analytics
Courtesy of Hashtags.org Analytics
