An American civilian was beheaded in Iraq by a group affiliated to the al Qaeda, US TV networks reported Tuesday.

Video broadcast by CNN and other TV networks showed a man sitting bound on a chair and then knelt on the floor with five masked men behind him.

"My name is Nick Berg, my father's name is Michael ... I have a brother and sister, David and Sarah," said the man, who added that he was from Philadelphia.

Berg's family in Philadelphia said US State Department officials told them on Monday that Berg's body was found near a highway in Baghdad on Saturday, the day he was beheaded.

The video showed one of the masked men read a statement that urged Muslims to seek revenge after pictures showing the abuse of Iraqi prisoners by US troops at Abu Ghraib prison near Baghdad were published.

The Bush administration said on Tuesday that the people beheading Berg were enemies of freedom and would be hunted down and brought to justice.

"It shows the true nature of the enemies of freedom. They have no regard for the lives of innocent men, women and children. We will pursue those who are responsible and bring them to justice," White House spokesman Scott McClellan said in Arkansas, from where President George W. Bush started a three-day education tour to defend his education initiatives.

Source: Xinhua