John Kerry: Steven Sotloff Killing a 'Punch in the Gut'

Secretary of State John Kerry added his anger to the reactions over the beheading of journalist Steven Sotloff, calling the news "a punch in the gut" as global efforts to secure his release failed, The Hill reported.

"Barbarity, sadly, isn't new to our world. Neither is evil. We've taken the fight to it before, and we're taking the fight to it today," Kerry said in a statement, calling the brazen beheading "an act of medieval savagery by a coward hiding behind a mask."

Kerry praised the young Florida-born journalist who had freelanced nobly around the world for Time and Foreign Policy magazines, among others, for chronicling "humanity in the face of inhumanity."

Sadly, he added, "This is not how the story should have ended."

Kerry and other Obama advisers now face a growing call for justice and a take-down of the Islamic State militants whose reach is feared far from their headquarters in Syria.

Kerry, speaking at a ceremony to honor a Texas attorney who will work as a special State Department representative to Muslim countries, said the United States is not backing down, NBC News reported.

"When terrorists anywhere around the world have murdered our citizens, the United States held them accountable, no matter how long it took," Kerry said. "And those who have murdered James Foley and Steven Sotloff in Syria should know that the United States will hold them accountable, too, no matter how long it takes."

Time magazine, to honor Sotloff's contributions, published excerpts of his stories from the world's conflicts.

As tributes and remembrances were shared online, the president, speaking in Tallinn, Estonia, on Wednesday vowed to go after those responsible for killing  Sotloff, Foley, and others, The New York Times reported. He also pledged leadership to rid the world of radical terrorists.

"Our objective is clear, and that is: degrade and destroy ISIL so that it’s no longer a threat, not just to Iraq but also to the region and to the United States," Obama said during a new conference, using an alternate acronym for the terrorist group. "It’s not only that we’re going to be bringing to justice those who perpetrated this terrible crime against these two fine young men. The United States will continue to lead a regional and international effort  against the kind of barbaric and ultimately empty vision" the group represents."

Related Stories:

• Obama Says Beheading Videos Won't Intimidate U.S.
• Slain US Journalist Sotloff Also Had Israeli Citizenship