Interpol calls multinational response to barbaric James Foley murder

Lyon: The head of the international police organisation Interpol today condemned the beheading of US journalist James Foley and called for a global response to the threat posed by Islamic extremists.

"The barbaric murder of James Foley by the Islamic State group underlines the depths of its depravity as it wages its campaign of terror across Syria and Iraq," Interpol chief Ronald Noble said in a statement.

Noble called on the world to remember the other innocent people held by "bloodthirsty terrorists who know neither compassion nor mercy."

Given that the executioner appeared to be British, Noble asked a "multilateral response against the terror threat posed by radicalised transnational fighters travelling to conflict zones in the Middle East."

Islamic State jihadists beheaded Foley, 40, and posted the video of the murder online, sparking a global outrage.