Video purports to show IS militants beheading hostages

[webfact]

Video purports to show IS militants beheading hostages
By ASHRAF KHALIL AND MAGGIE MICHAEL

CAIRO (AP) — A video purporting to show the mass beheading of Coptic Christian hostages was released Sunday by militants in Libya affiliated with the Islamic State group.

The killings raise the possibility that the Islamic militant group — which controls about a third of Syria and Iraq in a self-declared caliphate — has established a direct affiliate less than 500 miles (800 kilometers) from the southern tip of Italy. One of the militants in the video makes direct reference to that possibility, saying the group now plans to "conquer Rome."

The militants had been holding 21 Egyptian Coptic Christians hostage for weeks, all laborers rounded up from the city of Sirte in December and January. It was not clear from the video whether all 21 hostages were killed. It was one of the first such beheading videos from an Islamic State group affiliate to come from outside the group's core territory in Syria and Iraq.

The Associated Press could not immediately independently verify the video. But the Egyptian government and the Coptic Church, which is based in Egypt, both declared it authentic.

The Egyptian government declared a seven-day mourning period and President Abdel Fattah el-Sissi addressed the nation late Sunday night, pledging resilience in the fight against terrorism.

"These cowardly actions will not undermine our determination" said el-Sissi, who also banned all travel to Libya by Egyptian citizens and said his government reserves the right to seek retaliation. "Egypt and the whole world are in a fierce battle with extremist groups carrying extremist ideology and sharing the same goals."

The Coptic Church in a statement called on its followers to have "confidence that their great nation won't rest without retribution for the evil criminals."

The video's makers identified themselves as the Tripoli Province of the Islamic State group. A still photo, apparently taken from the video, was published last week in the Islamic State group's Dabiq online magazine — indicating a direct connection between the Libyan militants and the main group.

The video, released Sunday night, 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 that the others, addresses the camera in North American-accented English.

"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 said. "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 laid face-down and simultaneously beheaded.

The militant speaker then pointed northward across the red-stained waves and said, "We will conquer Rome, by Allah's permission."

In el-Aour, a dusty and impoverished village some 200 kilometers (125 miles) south of Cairo and home to 13 of the hostages, friends and family assumed the worst as soon as the photo was published on Thursday.

On Saturday, two days after the photo appeared, the community was wrapped in sorrow. Men covered their heads with dirt in a sign of both grief and shame. Women slapped their own faces or let out heart-wrenching shrieks of pain.

Villagers accused the Egyptian government of doing little to help the captives. The authorities, they say, were able to free Muslim Egyptians abducted in Libya in recent months but have done nothing to save the 21 because they are Christian — an accusation rooted in the deep sense of religious discrimination felt by most Egyptian Copts.

Samuel Walham's family immediately recognized him from the picture, showing him kneeling on the beach alongside four other hostages — each flanked by a knife-wielding militant.

"Look at my love. Look how beautiful he is," Walham's mother, Ibtassal Lami, said through tears as she cradled a photo of her son and women wailed in the family's ramshackle, two-story home. "He only went there to earn his living."

Libya, rich in oil and short on labor, has long been a magnet for Egyptians from all professions. Laborers have flocked there to escape poverty and unemployment at home, while professionals have gone in search of a better salary. Libya's 2011 civil war left much of the country in ruins, creating a boom for skilled foreign workers.

Egyptians have jumped at the opportunity: they are the largest single group of foreign workers in Libya. But over time, the risks have grown for those looking to Libya for a better paycheck. Egyptians, and Copts in particular, have become frequent targets for Islamic extremists who have flourished amid Libya's political turmoil. Islamic and tribal militias have overrun Libya's two largest cities, Tripoli and Benghazi — forcing the elected Western-based government and parliament to meet elsewhere.

Egyptian authorities have responded by suspending most flights to Libya and issuing travel warnings. Yet, Egyptian workers remain undeterred, and still line up outside the Libyan Embassy in Cairo in search of visas.

Walham secured his visa in late 2013. He arrived months before militias seized the capital Tripoli in August 2014. He found work as a plumber in the coastal city of Sirte, which was largely destroyed during the war and was the hometown of ousted Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi

It was there that Walham was kidnapped on Dec. 28. Six days later, gunmen seized another 13 Egyptian Christians from Sirte in a targeted raid on a housing compound for laborers.

Abanoub Ishaq, a 19-year-old worker from el-Aour, was there the night the militants burst in just before dawn, knocking on doors with a list of names. Those who answered were hauled away, Ishaq said. He managed to evade capture by remaining silent after receiving a phone call from a Muslim neighbor who warned him not to open the door because militants were searching for Christians.

"We heard nothing but my friends' screams, then they were silenced," he told The Associated Press.

The video at the end makes reference to the case of Camelia Shehata — a longstanding rallying point for Muslim fundamentalists. Shehata is an Egyptian Coptic woman who went missing and was rumored to have converted to Islam to escape an unhappy marriage to a Coptic priest. The Coptic Church bans divorce.

Shehata was eventually found by Egyptian police and returned to the Church and promptly disappeared from public view. Her case became a rallying point for fundamentalist Muslims, who regard her as a Muslim being held prisoner by the church. Salafist Muslims in Alexandria held weekly rallies on her behalf throughout 2010, and Shehata's case is believed to be one of the motivations for a deadly bombing of a Coptic church in Alexandria on New Year's Eve 2010.

As the men are being beheaded, a subtitle on the video declares: "This filthy blood is just some of what awaits you, in revenge for Camelia and her sisters."

---

Michael reported from el-Aour, Egypt.


-- (c) Associated Press 2015-02-16

[Somtamnication]

It doesn't purport anything. It is there for all to see. Now, can we do something about these pigs?

[NeverSure]

"These cowardly actions will not undermine our determination" said el-Sissi, who also banned all travel to Libya by Egyptian citizens and said his government reserves the right to seek retaliation. "Egypt and the whole world are in a fierce battle with extremist groups carrying extremist ideology and sharing the same goals."

Egypt has the strongest military in Africa and the Middle East (other than nukes.) It's also predominately Muslim. Let's see if it puts its money where its mouth is.

[ABCer]

It doesn't purport anything. It is there for all to see. Now, can we do something about these pigs?

Obviously NO!

Not the way we are going.

Not by what we are doing.

I have seen here on TV ridiculous calls to 'nuke' them. Which is totally obscene and inhuman yet very 'popular'.

We need many more deaths, many more 'happy returns' of Paris, Stockholm, Copenhagen etc. etc. etc.

Before a simple idea of Isolationism will come back. It worked for about 800 years! Why is it all of a sudden so abhorrent?

I'm afraid the weapons producers have finally found the way to a stable profitable future.

[Loles]

Please give napalm to IS and to all idiot supporters.

[Sydebolle]

In 1945 it was called "Fat Boy"; I'd rerun the incident calling it the "Fat Pig". It's time to bring this to a screeching and ultimate end. Once the fire is on all over the place (and in Europe it started all over the place) it is too late. Take those radicals, give 'em parachutes, put them on a drone and send them over the Middle East. Release the clamps over the desert and if they got shot down by their own people = good riddance!

[siampolee]

Possibly had Qaddafi been left alone this particular Libyan theater of conflict would not have appeared.

[Tchooptip]

Possibly had Qaddafi been left alone this particular Libyan theater of conflict would not have appeared.

Possibly had Saddam been left alone the main theather of conflict in the Middle East would not have appeared.

[JockPieandBeans]

The so called leader of this group of scumbags appears to have spent time in the US judging by his accent.

Find him alive, and make the abuse claims of Gitmo seem like a child's Birthday Party

[Lite Beer]

White House slams IS Libya 'beheading' of Egyptian Christians
Agence France-Presse
WASHINGTON February 16

The United States condemned as "despicable" the Islamic State group's apparent beheading of 21 Egyptian Christians in Libya after it released a video claiming to show the killings on Sunday.

"The United States condemns the despicable and cowardly murder of twenty-one Egyptian citizens in Libya by ISIL-affiliated terrorists," White House spokesman Josh Earnest said, referring to the IS extremists.

"ISIL’s barbarity knows no bounds. It is unconstrained by faith, sect, or ethnicity," Earnest added, saying the latest bloodshed "only further galvanizes the international community to unite against ISIL."

The Islamic State group in Libya released a video purportedly showing the beheading of the 21 Egyptian Coptic Christians, prompting Egypt’s president to threaten a "suitable" punishment for the killings.

President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi said his country reserved the right to "punish these murderers" as he called a meeting of security chiefs and declared seven days of mourning after the video was distributed on social media.

US Secretary of State John Kerry "strongly condemned the despicable act of terror" and offered his condolences in a call with Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry, agreeing to keep close touch while Egypt decides a course of action, a senior State Department official said.

The footage shows the handcuffed hostages wearing orange jumpsuits being beheaded by their black-suited captors on a beach the group said was in the Libyan province of Tripoli.

"This heinous act once again underscores the urgent need for a political resolution to the conflict in Libya," Earnest said

Source: http://www.nationmultimedia.com/breakingnews/White-House-slams-IS-Libya-beheading-of-Egyptian-C-30254172.html

-- The Nation 2015-02-16

[arjunadawn]

Inadvertently, the vomit driveling from the mouth of an Obama mouthpiece speaks something true, "IS is unconstrained by faith..." This is the point.

When fools like this then cite their own military forays as proof for requiring further action they are seeking to have the congress collectively jump into the fray to endorse a solution- like war, nation building, etc- to their problem! Remember, the morass in Libya was caused by these buffoons. I deeply, "earnest[ly]," wish to drag a fool like this by his hair, into the desert, and leave him with a cartoon placard of the prophet tied to them in the public square. Lets see him talk his way out of that one.

[ABCer]

Possibly had Qaddafi been left alone this particular Libyan theater of conflict would not have appeared.

Possibly had Saddam been left alone the main theather of conflict in the Middle East would not have appeared.

Possibly had Reza Pahlavi been not abandoned by his best and faithful friends there wouldn't have been problems with Iran as well?

Is it possible that these are just stupid mistakes? Looks more like a consistent policy with a certain aim - IMHO.

[Tchooptip]

Possibly had Qaddafi been left alone this particular Libyan theater of conflict would not have appeared.

Possibly had Saddam been left alone the main theather of conflict in the Middle East would not have appeared.

Possibly had Reza Pahlavi been not abandoned by his best and faithful friends there wouldn't have been problems with Iran as well?

Is it possible that these are just stupid mistakes? Looks more like a consistent policy with a certain aim - IMHO.

+1

Absolutely, at least IMHO too.

[Chicog]

Possibly had Qaddafi been left alone this particular Libyan theater of conflict would not have appeared.

Possibly had Saddam been left alone the main theather of conflict in the Middle East would not have appeared.

Possibly had Reza Pahlavi been not abandoned by his best and faithful friends there wouldn't have been problems with Iran as well?

Is it possible that these are just stupid mistakes? Looks more like a consistent policy with a certain aim - IMHO.

I doubt that would have made much difference since he was dying of cancer anyway, and the Iranian military were perfectly happy to switch allegiance to the Ayatollah after declaring themselves "neutral" at the height of the revolution.

[bartender100]

Well that's Egypt firmly in the fray now, not a good move by ISIS as they are the 3rd largest force in the area.

[mania]

Ah Libya.....While never a perfect spot was always easily sanctioned/controlled....

What happened?....Oh right I remember.........

Started with outsiders arming the rebels to help topple the government....a UN no fly zone that turned into an outright attack on even the homes of family members of the sitting government...Shoot seems like I just read this yesterday right before it all started in earnest http://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/02/world/africa/02libya.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0

Last but not least install a Central Bank which was always lacking in Libya...funny coincidence that the rebels had time to do that

WHILE fighting eh?....amazing really

Then well............Never been the same since...has it? Ah....Progress

Note: (The above is my opinion I am not asking anyone to accept it as theirs nor do I feel a need to defend it)

Edited February 16, 2015 by Scott

[canman]

Well that's Egypt firmly in the fray now, not a good move by ISIS as they are the 3rd largest force in the area.

Do you really think the muslim Egyptian army is going to risk spilling a drop of blood for some dead Chrsitians?

[Credo]

Well that's Egypt firmly in the fray now, not a good move by ISIS as they are the 3rd largest force in the area.

Do you really think the muslim Egyptian army is going to risk spilling a drop of blood for some dead Chrsitians?

They may not be anxious to risk spilling blood for Christians, but they may be willing to do so for Egyptians.

[canman]

Well that's Egypt firmly in the fray now, not a good move by ISIS as they are the 3rd largest force in the area.

Do you really think the muslim Egyptian army is going to risk spilling a drop of blood for some dead Chrsitians?

They may not be anxious to risk spilling blood for Christians, but they may be willing to do so for Egyptians.

Not for Egyptian Copts they won't. Why do you think these 'Egyptians' were in Libya in the first place?

[chuckd]

Possibly had Qaddafi been left alone this particular Libyan theater of conflict would not have appeared.

Possibly had Saddam been left alone the main theather of conflict in the Middle East would not have appeared.

Possibly had Reza Pahlavi been not abandoned by his best and faithful friends there wouldn't have been problems with Iran as well?

Is it possible that these are just stupid mistakes? Looks more like a consistent policy with a certain aim - IMHO.

I doubt that would have made much difference since he was dying of cancer anyway, and the Iranian military were perfectly happy to switch allegiance to the Ayatollah after declaring themselves "neutral" at the height of the revolution.

The Queen lived long after the Shah died, as did his heir to the Peacock throne, the Crown Prince.

You obviously were not privy to the magazine that was published by the Iranian SAVAMA (nee SAVAK) after the festivities were over.

The magazine published photos of many of the dead military officers that had been executed by head shots administered by the new Islamic regime.

My guess is between 100-200 non-duplicating photos.

[Don Aleman]

Enough governmental condemnations/prayers/ransoms paid/ begging/pleading. Time to fight fire with fire, not ineffectual words. Capture a few, secure them while recording their torture & beheading with a dull saw

Bury their remains with a pig cadaver so their" Paradise" will be denied them. Seek out their supporters, ( friends/mothers/fathers'/siblings/supporters/financiers) promising the same treatment plus destruction of all their world y possessions ! Offer a 1 MILLION USDOLLAR REWARD FOR TURNING IN a proven wanted

person which is a hell of a lot less then mobilizing the entire world to chase them down.!

Sounds cruel but not remotely near as cruel as these terrorist's methods so amputation from the shoulders up

will definitely end that persons bad behavior and a MILLION DOLLARS would get some to turn in their mothers !

[Chicog]

The Queen lived long after the Shah died, as did his heir to the Peacock throne, the Crown Prince.

You obviously were not privy to the magazine that was published by the Iranian SAVAMA (nee SAVAK) after the festivities were over.

The magazine published photos of many of the dead military officers that had been executed by head shots administered by the new Islamic regime.

My guess is between 100-200 non-duplicating photos.

Probably shouldn't have taken sides with a hugely unpopular ruler. I wonder how many of them were actually Savak, given that they were hated just as much as the Shah?

Even the US were meeting with the opposition before he scarpered, although they probably thought they could wheedle their way into influence with Khomeini: Another bad piece of US decision making if ever there was one.

Giving Khomeini a Polonium breakfast cuppa might well have saved a fair bit of grief.

[Steely Dan]

It's not per se the intervention in the Middle East that is the real problem, any more than subsequent disengagement. It's that these actions occur with no conceptual understanding that the worst scenario in all cases is Islam being allowed to take control. Yes, democratic liberal democracies would be nice, but they are an unattainable dream in the entire region, save for Israel. If every western action revolved around supporting secular tyrants who keep Islam out of power we would still have a certain amount of terrorism, but no ISIS and no Boko Haram.

The only silver lining is that the west may yet wake up just in time to save itself.

[arjunadawn]

Well that's Egypt firmly in the fray now, not a good move by ISIS as they are the 3rd largest force in the area.

Do you really think the muslim Egyptian army is going to risk spilling a drop of blood for some dead Chrsitians?

They may not be anxious to risk spilling blood for Christians, but they may be willing to do so for Egyptians.

Not for Egyptian Copts they won't. Why do you think these 'Egyptians' were in Libya in the first place?

I remain rather shocked at al Sisi's reprimand to the esteemed al azhar school and others regarding the need to reform Islam. That actually took a lot of balls because military or not, the clerics control perception. With MB's repudiation much of Mubarak's behavior was confirmed, and of course much of his horror minimized. Egyptian history, as it is unfolding, may yet vindicate Mubarak and his opposition to the MB. Why on earth do we suppose Egypt opposes the MB? Ah Duh! Because it is fascist, evil, destructive, and oppressive- the MB really is like the Get Smart KAOS. The MB has one goal- world domination! Its not more complicated. We actually see more than just Egypt embracing such positions, and yet we see Obama aggressively moving against those allies who oppose the MB. This should be the single greatest alarm in the West. All our prior friends aver the MB and fear terrorist groups the US invites to the White House. Is this not enough to beg the question- who controls US policy? (This is rhetorical: Of course CAIR and the Muslim Brotherhood control the White House. Otherwise it would be statistically impossible to have such a constellation of stars align in their favor- it begs reason).

Egypt will enter the fray. The fray is not geographic as the mouth clowns at White House allege. This is a pan regional epidemic of a nascent caliphate. Egypt may not ever see sand past the Golan, but they will be burying IS in the Maghreb. IS is in many, many places. Egypt will figure into more dynamics before this is over. If Obama actually left when his term expired, like all other presidents, it is likely the next would seek Egypt's aid- we need it.

[rethaier]

QUOTE: "This heinous act once again underscores the urgent need for a political resolution to the conflict in Libya," Earnest said

What political resolution do they think will work. The only political resolution ISIS will accept is total worldwide capitulation and acceptance of Sharia. The only solution is first to cut off the head, arms and legs then burn the body. Next the "peace loving Muslims", if they exist, need to step up to the plate and accept the culture they live in or go back to what they left behind. Finally these "peace loving Muslims" must stand up to their barbarian minority and say enough is enough, fall in line or face the consequences because we will name you to the appropriate authorities.

[Chicog]

I would rather Egypt responded like Jordan did than with a bit of PR bluster.

[bartender100]

<script type='text/javascript'>window.mod_pagespeed_start = Number(new Date());</script>

Well that's Egypt firmly in the fray now, not a good move by ISIS as they are the 3rd largest force in the area.

Do you really think the muslim Egyptian army is going to risk spilling a drop of blood for some dead Chrsitians?

They have started already, plenty of blood I would guess hitting training camps

Egypt says it has bombed Islamic State targets in Libya, hours after the group published video showing the apparent beheadings of 21 Egyptian Christians.

State TV said the dawn strikes had targeted camps, training sites and weapons storage areas.

Libyan officials said Egypt had hit targets in the militant-held city of Derna in co-ordination with Libya.

http://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-31483631

[Morch]

"These cowardly actions will not undermine our determination" said el-Sissi, who also banned all travel to Libya by Egyptian citizens and said his government reserves the right to seek retaliation. "Egypt and the whole world are in a fierce battle with extremist groups carrying extremist ideology and sharing the same goals."

Egypt has the strongest military in Africa and the Middle East (other than nukes.) It's also predominately Muslim. Let's see if it puts its money where its mouth is.

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/800822-egypt-strikes-is-group-in-libya-after-video-of-mass-killing/?p=9078615

That's without considering that Egypt is already engaged in a struggle with IS related organizations in the Sinai Peninsula.

[Mot Dang]

Possibly had Qaddafi been left alone this particular Libyan theater of conflict would not have appeared.

Possibly had Saddam been left alone the main theather of conflict in the Middle East would not have appeared.

Possibly had Reza Pahlavi been not abandoned by his best and faithful friends there wouldn't have been problems with Iran as well?

Is it possible that these are just stupid mistakes? Looks more like a consistent policy with a certain aim - IMHO.

+1

Absolutely, at least IMHO too.

Something could be said that the same may have not happened if ol' Snake Eyes was left in power in Iraq. We have been lied to in so many ways.

[Thaiready]

Possibly had Qaddafi been left alone this particular Libyan theater of conflict would not have appeared.

Possibly had Saddam been left alone the main theather of conflict in the Middle East would not have appeared.

If a frog had wings he wouldn't bump his ass.