ISIS militants send chilling message to Foley family: 'more will die'

The parents of James Foley, the American journalist beheaded by Islamist militant kidnappers, have released an email from his captors dated 12 August in which the militants proclaimed stridently that he would be the first of many Americans to die.

GlobalPost, the news website that had employed Foley and have been helping his parents to secure his release for the last two years, published the full text of the email from the Islamic State (formerly known as ISIS), which called it ''a message to the American government and their sheep-like citizens''.

The email, interspersed with sentences in all capital letters or italics, exclamation points and not a few misspellings, offered the first confirmation from ISIS that it had sought a ransom or prisoner swaps for Foley and other American hostages.

''You were given many chances to negotiate the release of your people via cash transactions as other governments have accepted,'' the letter read.

GlobalPost said, however, that the family had heard nothing from the captors for more than a year before receiving a demand for a ransom of €100 million.

The email denounced the Obama administration's aerial attacks on ISIS positions in Iraq, accusing it of ''cowardly shying away from a face-to-face confrontation'', and warned: ''Today our swords are unsheathed towards you, GOVERNMENT AND CITIZENS ALIKE! AND WE WILL NOT STOP UNTILL WE QUENCH OUR THIRST FOR YOUR BLOOD.''

The email announced that Foley would be the first captive killed. ''He will be executed as a DIRECT result of your transgressions towards us!'' it concluded.

Foley, 40, disappeared on 22 November 2012, in northern Syria. His captors are believed to be holding at least three other Americans.

(See: West aghast as Islamic Militants video beheading of US scribe)