Fla., NH Senators to Introduce Resolution to Honor Slain Journalists James Foley, Steven Sotloff
U.S. senators from Florida and New Hampshire, including Republican Marco Rubio, will introduce a resolution next week to officially honor journalists James Foley and Steven Sotloff who were recently beheaded by ISIS terrorists.
"It's important that Americans never forget James Foley and Steven Sotloff, the lives they led as successful journalists, and how loved they were by their families and friends," Rubio said in a statement.
"The U.S. Senate should honor these brave men by approving this resolution as soon as Congress reconvenes next week," Rubio added. "The American people should also never lose sight of the fact that these awful executions are only the beginning of ISIL's plans to sow evil across the Middle East and the world, unless we stop them."
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Sotloff, an American-Israeli journalist, was kidnapped in Aleppo, Syria, in August 2013 and held captive by militants from ISIS. On Tuesday, a video was released of ISIS beheading Sotloff.
Foley was abducted in November 2012 in north-western Syria. Last month, he became the first American citizen to be killed by ISIS.
Sotloff and Foley were freelance journalists.
The resolution will be introduced by Rubio; Senator Bill Nelson, a Democrat from Florida; Kelly Ayotte, a Republican from New Hampshire; and Senator Jeanne Shaheen, a Democrat from New Hampshire.
ISIS, or the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria, is an al-Qaeda offshoot which has gained control over vast swaths of Syria and Iraq. Also known as the Islamic State and ISIL, the group has been aiming to form an Islamic emirate in the Levant, a region also known as the Eastern Mediterranean, through "jihad." Its men have killed hundreds of people in Iraq.
"Our thoughts and prayers are with the families and friends of James Foley and Steven Sotloff," Nelson said in a statement. "Steven's family are my constituents and I've been in touch with them through their representative throughout this horrific ordeal. The United States needs to immediately put together a coalition and go after this group. We need to take the fight directly to them, not only in Iraq but in Syria as well."
Sen. Ayotte said she joins all Americans in mourning the deaths of Foley and Sotloff. "James and Steven bravely risked their lives to help the world better understand the tragedy unfolding in Syria," Ayotte said in a statement. "The barbaric murder of these two Americans must not go unanswered. ISIS represents a grave threat to people of all faiths and nationalities who stand against their evil ideology of death and oppression. That is why the United States should lead an international coalition dedicated to the defeat of ISIS without delay."
Sen. Shaheen called ISIS' brutal murder of the two journalists "appalling acts of terrorism." "ISIS must be stopped, and we as a nation must lead an international effort to end the threat they pose to American citizens, our national security and people around the world."
Hundreds of members of the Christian and Yazidi minorities have also been killed, and tens of thousands of them have fled their homes in Iraq due to the ISIS threat.
