Egypt Launches Air Raids Against ISIS Bases in Libya
Egypt Launches Air Raids Against ISIS Bases in Libya
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Coptic Christian men whose relatives were abducted by ISIS militants gather in the village of el-Aour, near Minya, Egypt, on Feb. 13, 2015Hassan Ammar—AP
Egyptian warplanes launched fresh sorties against militants allied with the Islamic State of Iraq and Greater Syria (ISIS) on Monday after the jihadists released a gruesome video showing the apparent execution of more than a dozen Egyptian hostages over the weekend.
Egypt’s air force reportedly targeted ISIS training sites and weapons storage areas in Libya at dawn, reports Reuters.
See Egyptian Coptic Christians Mourn Brothers Slain by ISIS
A relative of one of the Egyptian Coptic Christians purportedly killed by ISIS militants in Libya reacts after hearing the news on Feb. 16, 2015 in the village of Al-Our in Egypt's southern province of Minya. Mohamed El-Shahed——AFP/Getty ImagesRelatives of Egyptian Coptic Christians purportedly murdered by ISIS militants in Libya sit inside a house after hearing the news on Feb. 16, 2015 in the village of Al-Our in Egypt's southern province of Minya. Mohamed El-Shahed—AFP/Getty ImagesMen mourn over the Egyptian Coptic Christians who were captured in Libya and killed by militants affiliated with ISIS, at the Virgin Mary church in the village of Al-Our, near Minya, 135 miles south of Cairo, Feb. 16, 2015. Hassan Ammar—APEgyptian Coptic men mourn for 21 Coptic Egyptian men seized by ISIS militants in the central city of Sirte, Libya, more than a month ago at the Virgin Mary Church in the village of Al-Our near Minya, 135 miles south of Cairo, Feb. 16, 2015. Hassan Ammar—APMen mourn over Egyptian Coptic Christians who were captured in Libya and killed by militants affiliated with ISIS, inside of the Virgin Mary Church in the village of Al-Our, near Minya, 135 miles south of Cairo, Feb. 16, 2015.Hassan Ammar—APA Coptic man kisses a prayer banner, which is hung on a cross, as neighbors and friends of the relatives of Egyptian Coptic men who were killed in Libya stand at the courtyard of a church before attending a mass in Al-Our village, in Minya governorate, south of Cairo, Feb. 16, 2015. Asmaa Waguih—ReutersEgyptian Coptic Christians attend a memorial ceremony for relatives purportedly killed by ISIS militants in Libya, on Feb. 16, 2015, in the village of Al-Our in Egypt's southern province of Minya. Mohamed El-Shahed—AFP/Getty ImagesVillage residents inside the Virgin Mary Church in al-Our, Egypt, on Feb. 16, 2015, mourn Egyptian Coptic Christians who were captured in Libya and killed by ISIS militants Hassan Ammar—APA Coptic clergyman shows a picture of a man whom he says is one of the Egyptian Coptic Christians purportedly killed by ISIS militants in Libya, on Feb. 16, 2015, during a memorial ceremony in the village of Al-Our in Egypt's southern province of Minya. Mohamed El-Shahed—AFP/Getty Images
“The air strikes hit their targets precisely, and the falcons of our air forces returned safely to their bases,” read a statement released by the nation’s military on Monday.
Hours before the strikes began, Egyptian President Abdul Fattah al-Sisi promised during a televised address to retaliate against the militants responsible for the murder of 21 Egyptian Coptic Christians who had been working in Libya as laborers.
“Egypt reserves the right to respond at the proper time and in the appropriate style in retaliation against those inhuman criminal killers,” al-Sisi said, according to the BBC.
Fighters associated with ISIS have flocked to the group’s strongholds in eastern Syria and swaths of northern Iraq. However, years of instability in war-torn Libya have also allowed the group to expand its influence into pockets of North Africa.
