They had been abducted by the Libyan branch of Islamic State in two different incidents in December and January. Egypt's military reacted by attacking Islamic State targets in Libya on Monday.
Family of a Christian killed by ISIS in Lybia mourn. / AP
A gruesome video shared through a pro-ISIS Twitter account on Sunday showed how the Libyan branch of the Islamic State beheaded 21 Egyptian Coptic Christians who had been abducted in two separate incidents in December and January.
They had gone to Libya in search of jobs, and were captured by Islamic terrorists in the city of Sirte.
The video depicts several men in orange jumpsuits being led along a beach, each accompanied by a masked militant. The men are made to kneel and one militant, dressed differently from the others, addresses the camera in North American-accented English.
The video is entitled: “A Message Signed With Blood to the Nation of the Cross.”
Caption of the brutal video in which 21 Christians are beheaded. / El País“All crusaders: safety for you will be only wishes, especially if you are fighting us all together. Therefore we will fight you all together,” he says, according to The Guardian. “The sea you have hidden Sheikh Osama bin Laden’s body in, we swear to Allah we will mix it with your blood.”
The men are then made to lie face down and all are simultaneously beheaded. The militant speaker then points northward and says: “We will conquer Rome, by Allah’s permission.”
EGYPT RESPONDS WITH MILITARY OPERATION
The Egyptian president, Abdel Fatah al-Sisi, called an urgent meeting of the national defence council and declared a seven-day mourning period, according to a statement from the president’s office.
“It is with deep sorrow that President Abdel Fatah al-Sisi mourns the Egyptian victims of an abhorrent act of terrorism in Libya and offers his deepest condolences to the Egyptian people for their grave loss,” the statement said.
Demonstration in Egypt, calling more action of the government against ISIS. / ReutersEgypt's military also said in a statement on state television it had carried out an air strike against Islamic State targets in Libya on Monday. The attack focussed on Islamic State camps, training sites and weapons storage areas, where Islamist militants have thrived amid chaos.
Several demonstrations in Egypt have already asked their government to be bolder in their fight against Islamic Terrorism. In the social networks several hashtags like #CopticLivesMatter and #IamCoptic are been used to dennounce the killings of the Egyptian Christians in Libya.
Social network users react: #CopticLivesMatter
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