Following the executions of their sons, the families of James Foley and Steven Sotloff revealed the federal government threatened them if they attempted to pay a ransom to ISIL. U.S. government officials denied they threatened the Foley and Sotloff families.

Diane Foley, mother of James Foley, accused the government of threatening her and her family with criminal charges if they attempted to pay the ransom ISIL demanded for Foley's freedom, according to Boing Boing.

"We had to beg. The higher we went, it was more difficult. And we were an annoyance," Diane Foley told ABC News. "It felt at some levels, they really didn't have time for us."

She said the White House and State Department officials she spoke with threatened her with criminal charges if she attempted to pursue paying the ransom.

"We were told very clearly, three times, that it was illegal for us to try to ransom our son out and that we had the possibility of being prosecuted. I was surprised that there was so little compassion," she said in the interview.

Soon after Diane Foley spoke with reporters, Sotloff family revealed they too were threatened, according to Yahoo News. Family friend Barak Barfi, who is speaking for the Sotloff family, confirmed the same happened to the Sotloffs.

However, the White House denies any threats were made. White House Chief of Staff Denis McDonough appeared on Sunday morning shows to deny the allegations.

"We didn't threaten anybody, but we made clear what the law is," he said on Fox News Sunday. "That's our responsibility, to make sure we explain the law and uphold the law."

The State Department similarly denied the allegations it threatened the Foley family. Deputy spokesperson Marie Harf explained to reporters during a press briefing on Friday, "It's part of our job to help families in these horrible situations understand America's laws about paying ransom to terrorists."

She added, "Those laws are not going to change any time."

Nonetheless, she remained adamant that the Department "would never and did not ever intend to nor do we think we ever did anything that we would consider threatening. "

Foley and Sotloff were executed by ISIL on Aug. 19 and Sept. 2, respectively, after being held captive by the Islamic terrorist group.