| 2015 Islamic State killing of Christian migrants in Libya | |
|---|---|
| Part of theLibyan civil war (2014–2020) and thegenocide of Christians by the Islamic State | |
 Banner containing scenes from the video outside of theKidane Mehret Church inJerusalem, protesting the killings | |
| Location | Libya |
| Date | 19 April 2015 |
| Target | Ethiopian andEritrean Christian migrants |
Attack type | Decapitations,mass shooting |
| Deaths | 28–34 |
| Perpetrators | Islamic State – Libya Province |
| Motive | Anti-Christian sentiment |
On 19 April 2015, a video was released by theIslamic State's Libyan branch depicting the shooting and beheading of two groups ofChristianmigrant workers held hundreds of miles apart. A group of around 12 captives were held on the coast in eastern Libya, while the other group of around 16 was held in a desert. The video threatened the killing of Christians who did not convert toIslam or payjizya. Of the approximately 30 victims shown in the video, the majority wereEthiopian, but at least seven were fromEritrea. The Islamic State labeled the victims as members of theEthiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church.
TheIslamic State (IS), anIslamist militant group, was established fromal-Qaeda in Iraq. A self-proclaimedcaliphate, the group controlled a third of the territory of Iraq and Syria by 2015.[1] In August 2014, it led anoffensive in northern Iraq that forced thousands of Christians to flee theNineveh Plains to avoid persecution. Iraq'sYazidi minority was the target of anethnic cleansing campaign by IS that led to thousands of deaths from mass starvation, enslavement, and massacres. The militant groupdestroyed a large amount ofAssyrian,Shia, andChristian cultural heritage in Iraq.[2] IS took advantage of political instability following thekilling of Muammar Gaddafi in order to gain a foothold in Libya.[3] Since then, its affiliates have claimed several attacks on foreigners in the country, including the2015 Corinthia Hotel attack.[4]
IS utilized social media in order to recruit Muslims worldwide. The group has publishedpropaganda videos featuring the killing of captives, such as the burning of Jordanian pilotMuath al-Kasasbeh and the beheading of American journalistJames Foley.[1][5] In February 2015, IS published a video showing thebeheading of 21 Egyptian Coptic Christians in Libya, promptingretaliatory Egyptian airstrikes.[6][2]
The 29-minute video was titled "Until There Came to Them Clear Evidence".[a][2] It was released on IS-affiliated websites and social media profiles on 19 April 2015 and bore the icon ofAl Furqan Media Foundation, the group's media branch.[1] It features what was described by American magazineTime as "action movie-style editing andshock-value symbolism" akin to other propaganda videos by the militant group.[5]
The video begins with a 25-minute segment of scenes filmed in Iraq and Syria purportedly showing the history ofrelations between Christians and Muslims,[1] narrated by IS clericSheikh Abu Malik Anas al-Nashwan,[b] likely speaking from northern Syria. After examining a portrait ofJesus from theQuran, al Nashwan briefly discusses the formation of theProtestant,Catholic, andEastern Orthodox denominations of Christianity. The video then shows visuals, apparently from ahistorical drama, of medieval Muslim fighters marching and attacking a castle, before cutting to a scene of IS leaderAbu Bakr al-Baghdadi climbing theminbar of theGreat Mosque of al-Nuri, Mosul. Al-Nashwan denounces theTrinity asapostasy and declares that Christians, who he describes asinfidels, must either payjizya (a tax levied on non-Muslims by early Muslim caliphates) or be killed. He asserts that Christians fromRaqqa, Syria, had refused to convert to Islam but have instead paid jizya, and the video shows interviews of Christians in territory under the militia's control, includingAleppo and Raqqa, who say that they live in safety.[8] Al-Nashwan then justifies the expulsion of Iraqi Christians as a form of mercy, claiming that they refused to pay jizya or negotiate with IS representatives.[2]
The video cuts to footage of IS fighters destroying churches, gravestones, and other Christian symbols, includingcrosses and portraits ofMary, mother of Jesus,[9][1] before proceeding to footage of the captives, who are held in two separate groups hundreds of miles apart.[2][6] The first group, held by an IS affiliate named Barqa Province in eastern Libya, contains around a dozen men in orangejumpsuits on the coast. The second group of around 16 prisoners dressed in black, held in the desert by a southern Libya affiliate named Fazzan Province, is shown kneeling in front of 16 gunmen holding rifles to their heads.[5][1] A caption labels the captives as "followers of the cross from the enemyEthiopian Church".[c][11] One of the gunmen, who is masked and dressed in black,[12] points his pistol at the camera and states:[6]
All praise be to Allah, the Lord and cherisher of the world and may peace and blessings be upon the Prophet Mohammed. To the nation of the cross, we are back again on the sands, where the companions of the Prophet, peace be upon him, have stepped on before, telling you: Muslim blood that was shed under the hands of your religion is not cheap. In fact, their blood is the purest blood because there is a nation behind them [which] inherits revenge. And we swear to Allah: the one who disgraced you by our hands, you will not have safety, even in your dreams, until you embrace Islam.
The gunman quotesMuhammad, stating that the Prophet would protect people who "perform prayer and payalms" unless commanded otherwise by Islam, before claiming that IS' fight was "between faith andblasphemy, between truth and falsehood", and would continue until the elimination of "polytheism" and complete submission to Allah.[6]
The video then alternates between footage of captives in the first group being individually beheaded, having their blood drained into theMediterranean Sea, and prisoners in the second group being shot in the head atpoint-blank range.[11][5][13] The video concludes with al-Nashwan saying:[2]
We tell Christians everywhere that the Islamic State will spread, God willing. It will reach you even if you are in fortresses. Those who embrace Islam or jizya will be safe. But those who refuse ... will have nothing from us but the edge of the sword. The men will be killed, the women and children enslaved, and the money seized. That is Allah and the prophet's judgment.
The victims were Christianmigrant workers likely attempting to immigrate to Europe.[14][1] According to the Ethiopian government, 30 of the dead were its citizens.[6][15] Only two of the men were named—identified as Eyasu Yikunoamlak and Balcha Belete by relatives.[16] They hailed fromKirkos and entered Libya through Sudan, hoping to take a boat to Italy before reaching the United Kingdom.[9] At least seven victims were Eritrean,[5] three of whom wereasylum seekers deported from Israel in 2014, according to theHotline for Refugees and Migrants.[17] An anonymous blogger toldRadio France Internationale that eight victims were Ethiopian-born Eritreans.[18]
On 24 December 2018, the LibyanCriminal Investigation Department announced that it discovered amass grave containing the remains of 34 men executed in the video, using information obtained from interrogations of detained IS militants. The mass grave was apparently situated on a farm inSirte, according to drone photos. After being exhumed, the bodies were set to be repatriated to Ethiopia.[19]
Before the victims were identified as Ethiopian citizens, government spokespersonRedwan Hussien condemned the executions, "whether [the victims] are Ethiopians or not".[20] After their citizenship was confirmed, the government released a statement reading "The Ethiopian government is deeply saddened by the barbarous act committed against our innocent nationals",[21] and anational mourning period of three days was declared starting on 22 April, during which flags were flown athalf-mast.[22]
TheEthiopian Catholic Church held aMass for the victims, and several religious figures condemned the killings, includingArchbishop ofAddis AbabaBerhaneyesus Demerew Souraphiel, Patriarch of theEthiopian Orthodox Tewahedo ChurchAbune Mathias, and President of theEthiopian Islamic Affairs Supreme Council Mohammed Amin.[23] TheHoly Synod of the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church passed a decision to annually commemorate the victims and designate them as "EthiopianMartyrs in the land of Egypt".[24]
On 22 April, around 100,000 demonstrators participated in a government-led protest against the killings inMeskel Square, Addis Ababa. Prime MinisterHailemariam Desalegn, who spoke at the rally, said: "This week's cruel act which was committed against our citizens in Libya not only gives a glimpse into terrorism, but also shows theSatanic acts and objectives of those who committed the act", while also urging his citizens to resist "home-grown extremism" and warning against illegal migration through theSahara.[14] During the rally, anti-government protesters threw stones at police, who responded withtear gas. Over 100 people were detained, and some demonstrators were hospitalized.[25][26]
Libyan foreign ministerMohammed al-Dairi said that he was "appalled" by the "barbaric killing" and requested assistance from the international community in his country’s fight against terrorism.[27] AWhite House spokeswoman condemned the killings, saying, "That these terrorists killed these men solely because of their faith lays bare the terrorists' vicious senseless brutality", and also urged for a political settlement in Libya and a rejection of terrorism.[28] French PresidentFrançois Hollande expressed outrage over the killings and called for a national peace deal to restore stability in Libya.[21] Statements were also issued by the foreign ministries of Algeria,[29] the Czech Republic,[30] Greece,[31] Japan,[32] Russia,[33] Spain,[34] and Turkey.[35]
Pope Francis denounced the "continuing martyrdom" of Christians by IS and expressed sadness and distress over the killings in a message to Abune Mathias.[36] TheAfrican Union,European Union,[37] andUnited Nations also released statements condemning the killings.[38]