Fighters
pledging allegiance to the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL)
have released a video purporting to show the killing of 21 Egyptian
Coptic Christians kidnapped in Libya.
The Egyptian government and the Coptic Church have confirmed the authenticity of the footage.
It showed the Egyptian workers, all wearing orange jump suits, being
beheaded near a waterfront which is said to be located in the Libyan
province of Tripoli.
The men were seized in two attacks in December and January from the coastal town of Sirte in eastern Libya.
In the wake of the video release, Egyptian President Abdel Fattah
el-Sisi has called for an urgent meeting with Egypt's top national
security and declared seven days of mourning.
He said Egypt reserves the right to respond to the incident in a suitable way.
The Coptic Orthodox Church has issued a statement saying it is confident the killers will be brought to justice.
Egypt
launched airstrikes against Islamic State targets in neighboring Libya
on Monday, hours after militants there released a video purporting to
show the mass beheading of Egyptian Christian hostages.
A
spokesman for the Armed Forces General Command announced the strikes on
state radio, and said they were "to avenge the bloodshed and to seek
retribution from the killers," the Associated Press reported.
The
statement said the warplanes targeted weapons caches and training camps
before returning safely. "Let those far and near know that Egyptians
have a shield that protects them," it said.
It marks the first
time Cairo has publicly acknowledged taking military action in Libya,
where extremist groups seen as a threat to both countries have taken
root in recent years.
A spokesman for Libyan Prime Minister
Abdullah al-Thinni told the BBC that Egyptian jets had taken part in
co-ordinated air strikes on the militant-held city of Derna.
Libya's
air force said it had launched strikes in the eastern city of Darna,
which was taken over by an Islamic State affiliate last year. The
announcement, on the Facebook page of the Air Force Chief of Staff, did
not provide further details.
Meanwhile, Bahrain said it deployed fighter planes to Jordan, a day after it announced plans to send troops to the kingdom.
Bahrain
and Jordan are part of the U.S.-led coalition carrying out airstrikes
against the Islamic State, also known as ISIL and ISIS.
On Sunday,
a video purporting to show the mass beheading the hostages by militants
in Libya claiming loyalty to ISIL was posted on social media. On
Twitter, several accounts distributed links to the video carrying the
title, "A Message Signed With Blood To The Nation Of The Cross."
Militants
in Libya had been holding 21 Egyptian Coptic Christians hostage for
weeks, threatening them with death. The makers of the video identify
themselves as the Tripoli Province of the Islamic State group — the
Islamic militant group that controls about a third of Syria and Iraq.
The video shows a line of men dressed in orange jumpsuits forced onto their knees and beheaded.
The
Egyptian government and the Coptic Church based in Egypt both declared
the video authentic. Egypt banned all travel to Libya by its citizens in
response.
The Egyptian government declared a seven-day mourning
period, and President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi addressed the nation late
Sunday night.
"These cowardly actions will not undermine our
determination" Sisi said. "Egypt and the whole world are in a fierce
battle with extremist groups carrying extremist ideology and sharing the
same goals." Contributing: Jane Onyanga-Omara, USA TODAY; Associated Press
