Seven Egyptians Found Shot Dead In Eastern Libya

ICC Note: The bodies of seven Egyptian Christians were found outside the city of Benghazi in eastern Libya. The men appeared to have been killed in an execution style. They were seen being taken from their homes on Sunday night. The motive for the killings is not clear. There are Islamic extremist groups known to be active in the area and have been implicated in similar killings in recent months. Egyptian Christians in Libya have been targeted in the past because of their religious activities, it is not clear if that is the motive in this situation.
02/24/2014 Libya (Your Middle East) – Seven Egyptian Christians were found shot dead near Benghazi in eastern Libya on Monday, security and foreign ministry officials said.
“The bodies of seven Egyptians were found in Jalluta, east of Benghazi,” Benghazi security spokesman Ibrahim al-Sharaa told AFP.
Egyptian foreign ministry spokesman Badr Abdelatty confirmed to AFP that the victims were “all Christians.”
But Abdelatty said it was unclear if the killings had a sectarian motive, saying a financial dispute could be behind the murders.
“Egypt has asked the Libyan authorities to open an investigation and to inform it of the results,” he said.
Benghazi, cradle of Libya’s 2011 armed uprising that toppled dictator Moamer Kadhafi, has seen near-daily attacks on security and other targets as the weak central government has struggled to rein in former rebel brigades turned militias.
The victims were kidnapped from their home late Sunday by an unknown group, Abdelatty said, adding that eight men had been taken originally but one escaped by throwing himself from his abductors’ car.
The Egyptians were killed execution-style by gunshots to the head and chest, a medical source in Benghazi said.
Christians have previously been targeted on charges of proselytising in the Muslim country.…
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