Isis Beheading Of Coptic Christians on Libyan Beach Brings Islamists to the Doorstep of Europe
By
Lizzie Dearden
16 February 2015
The beheading of 21 Coptic Christians on a beach in
Libya has brought Isis to the doorstep of Europe.
The mass murder, which provoked a volley of Egyptian
air strikes on the group’s Libyan stronghold of Derna, realised long-held fears
of militants reaching the Mediterranean coast.
Former Libyan PM previously warned that they would reach Mediterranean
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Isis started in Iraq and now controls swathes of
adjoining Syria, including along the Turkish border, as part of its so-called
Islamic State.
Its ideology has spread much further, with pledges of
allegiance from terrorist groups in Egypt, Gaza, Jordan, Lebanon, Saudi Arabia,
Tunisia, Yemen and now Libya.
Days before Isis released its gory video depicting the
Egyptians’ beheadings, Libya’s former Prime Minister warned that the group
would soon reach the Mediterranean and even Europe if order was not restored in
the country.
Ali Zeidan said Libya’s fractured government and easy
access to weapons seized during the fall of Colonel Gaddafi made it more
susceptible to the activities of jihadists, according to The Times.
“(Isis) are growing. They are everywhere,” he added.
“In Libya, the situation is still under control. If we
leave it one month or two months more I don’t think you can control it.
“It will be a big war in the country and it will be
here in Europe as well.”
Libya has seen fierce fighting between rival militias
since Gaddafi was overthrown during the 2011 Arab Spring.
Mr Zeidan, who fled to Europe after losing a
parliamentary vote of confidence, reported that Isis had a growing presence in
some of the bigger cities and was trying to recruit fighters from rival
Islamist groups.
Aref Ali Nayed, Libya’s ambassador to the United Arab
Emirates, also said Isis’s presence in Libya was increasing “exponentially”.
Its military gains last summer sparked a rush by other
Islamist groups in the Middle East and North Africa to ally themselves with the
group by pledging allegiance and changing their names.
The jihadists behind the beheadings in Libya call
themselves the Tripoli Province of the Islamic State.
As the turmoil in Libya continued last year, they
gained control of the port city of Derna and nearby Sirte, where Isis seized
the murdered Coptic hostages in December and January.
The location of their murders could not be confirmed
but footage showed them dressed in orange jumpsuits kneeling on a beach. Behind
each of them were masked militants who wielded their knives to kill the bound
hostages simultaneously.
Isis affiliates have also claimed responsibility for
attacks on the Egyptian military and police in the Sinai Peninsula, further along
the Mediterranean coast between Egypt and Gaza.
Source: http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/middle-east/isis-beheading-of-coptic-christians-on-libyan-beach-brings-islamists-to-the-doorstep-of-europe-10049769.html
URL: https://newageislam.com/war-terror/isis-beheading-coptic-christians-libyan/d/101581