An Egyptian jihadist group has released a video showing the execution of four men accused of spying for the army and for Israel’s Mossad intelligence service.
It is the second time such gruesome footage, which includes three beheadings, has been distributed by Ansar Beit al-Maqdis (Partisans of Jerusalem), the deadliest militant group based in Egypt’s insurgency-hit Sinai region. A similar video of beheadings was released by the group on August 28, showing the decapitation of four men also accused of being “Israeli informants”. Ansar Beit al-Maqdis says it supports the Islamic State (IS) group, which has seized swaths of territory in Iraq and Syria, but has not pledged formal allegiance to it.
The latest video, released on Twitter, features parts of a September speech by IS spokesman Abu Mohamed al-Adnani directed at Sinai jihadists, urging them to kill Egyptian security personnel. The footage then shows the execution of four men after their recorded “confessions”. One was shot dead after saying he worked with the Egyptian army, while the other three were beheaded after saying they worked for Mossad.
Before being killed, the men called on other “spies” to repent publicly, saying the militants knew who they were and they would not be spared. The footage also shows jihadists manning checkpoints and searching for “spies”.
Egypt’s Sinai Peninsula bordering Israel has seen fighting between militants and security forces after the army ousted Islamist president Mohamed Mursi in July last year. Militants have killed scores of security personnel, saying the attacks are in retaliation for a brutal government crackdown since Dr Mursi ‘s ouster. The authorities have launched a sweeping crackdown on his supporters, leaving at least 1,400 people dead and more than 15,000 jailed.
