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US condemns ISILâ€™s apparent execution of Jordanian pilot

04 February 2015 02:23 (UTC +04:00)

The terror group released a video earlier Tuesday that allegedly showed captured Jordanian pilot Moaz al-Kasasbeh being burned alive. The U.S. intelligence community is evaluating the video's authenticity.

"Today, the coalition fights for everyone who has suffered from ISIL’s inhumanity," said President Barack Obama. "It is their memory that invests us and our coalition partners with the undeterred resolve to see ISIL and its hateful ideology banished to the recesses of history."

Obama added that the execution of the pilot would "redouble the vigilance and determination on the part of the global coalition" to make sure that ISIL is destroyed.

Kasasbeh was captured by the terrorist group after his plane crashed in December near ISIL’s stronghold of Raqaa in Syria where he was bombing ISIL targets alongside U.S.-led coalition forces.

"As a part of the counter-ISIL coalition he is an important member of our team," said Lloyd James Austin III, commander of U.S. Central Command, in a statement condemning execution.

Josh Earnest, the White House press secretary, also addressed the video saying the killing took place because of Jordan's substantial contributions to the anti-ISIL coalition.

"In fact, you know, the reason that we're discussing the welfare and the apparent killing of this one Jordanian military officer is that there are Jordanian military pilots that are risking their lives to carry out airstrikes against ISIL targets in Syria," Earnest said and added that the time when the video might have been recorded would be among the questions that will be considered by the intelligence community.

Pentagon Press Secretary John Kirby warned that the grisly video "has the potential to backfire" on ISIL "in the region," stressing that the U.S. and its coalition partners will not be deterred from continuing the fight against ISIL.

The video was released as Jordanian King Abdullah II is in Washington accompanied by Foreign Minister Nasser Judeh.

Jordanian authorities said Kasasbeh was killed Jan. 3.