U.S. confirms ISIL captured 88 Eritrean Christians in Libya

Special to WorldTribune.com

A U.S. defense official on June 8 said Islamic State of Iraq and Levant (ISIL) ambushed a human-smuggling convoy in Libya last week and kidnapped 88 Eritrean Christians.

ISIL’s capture of the Christians was confirmed by the U.S. after officials reviewed a recent intelligence report. The convoy was hit by ISIL south of Tripoli on June 3, the Libya Herald reported.

Islamic State fighters.
Islamic State fighters.

Meron Estafanos, the co-founder of the Stockholm-based International Commission on Eritrean Refugees, told the Herald that the convoy included “about 12 Eritrean Muslims and some Egyptians. They put them in another truck and they put 12 Eritrean women Christians in a smaller pick-up.”

According to Estafanos, ISIL jihadists demanded Muslims in the convoy make themselves known. The people traveling in the convoy were asked by ISIL about the Koran and their religious observance in what was said to be an attempt to catch Christians masquerading as Muslims.

As the ISIL militants drove away with the captives, nine men attempted to jump out of the back of the truck. Estefanos said three men escaped and were safe but the fate of the others was not known.

Thousands of migrants from the Middle East and sub-Saharan Africa have been traveling through Libya in an attempt to cross the Mediterranean to southern Europe. The increased presence of ISIL and other terror groups, however, significantly increases the risk for Christians and other non-Muslims attempting the crossing.

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