By Addis Getachew
ADDIS ABABA
Ethiopia's religious institutions have condemned the purported execution in Libya of dozens of Ethiopian Christians by the Daesh militant group.
"It was sad that the group that perpetrated the massacre did so in the name of religion," Sheikh Mohammed Awol Umar Jamal, head of Ethiopia's Supreme Islamic Affairs Council, said in a Monday statement.
"Their actions are anti-Islamic," he added.
The Ethiopian Orthodox Church has also condemned the purported massacre, describing it as "an act of wickedness."
"The Orthodox Church prays for those slain," the statement read, going on to express the church's condolences for the families of the victims.
The Ethiopian Interfaith Council likewise condemned the purported executions.
Earlier Monday, the Ethiopia government confirmed that the men who were brutally executed by Daesh militants in Libya in a recent video were all Ethiopian.
In a statement, the government said it had relied on numerous sources to confirm that the victims shown in the video were Ethiopian migrant workers in Libya.
The video, released by Daesh on Sunday, purportedly shows the execution of dozens of Ethiopian Christians in two different parts of Libya by Daesh's local affiliates.
The video shows over 15 dark-skinned men wearing black suits being shot in the head in the southern Fezzan region.
It shows another ten people, also dark-skinned but wearing orange jumpsuits, being beheaded on the coast of Libya's northern Barqa region.
AU condemns Daesh execution of Ethiopians in Libya
The African Union (AU) on Monday expressed its "utmost shock" over the purported killing in Libya of dozens of Ethiopians by the Daesh militant group.
"Such a despicable act only underlines the urgency for enhanced international action in addressing the prevailing situation in Libya, [which has been] marked by the collapse of law and order and the increasing presence of terrorist groups," AU Commission Chairperson Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma said in a statement.
Dlamini-Zuma, the statement added, "reiterates the AU's commitment to continue working with all relevant African and international stakeholders towards the restoration of effective state institutions and security in Libya, as well as the elimination of the terrorist groups that are operating in that country."
Earlier Monday, the Ethiopian government confirmed that the men who were brutally executed by Daesh militants in Libya – as shown in a recent video – were all Ethiopian.
In a statement, the government said numerous sources had confirmed that the victims shown in the video were Ethiopian migrants working in Libya.
The video, released by Daesh on Sunday, purportedly shows the execution of dozens of Ethiopian Christians in two different parts of Libya by Daesh's local affiliates.
The video shows over 15 dark-skinned men wearing black suits being shot in the head in the southern Fezzan region.
It shows another ten people, also dark-skinned but wearing orange jumpsuits, being beheaded on the coast of Libya's northern Barqa region.
