Luxembourg, 20/04/2015 (Agence Europe) - On Monday 20 April, the EU condemned the murder of 28 Ethiopian Christians by Islamic State (IS) in Libya.
This murder “demonstrates once again that terrorists stop at nothing in their attempts to create religious divides”, said the spokesperson for High Representative of the EU for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Federica Mogherini. “This is not a clash of civilisations. This is not a fight between Islam and the West. This is a criminal misuse of a noble religion to perpetrate terrorist attacks in a struggle for power”, the spokesperson added.
On Sunday 19 April, IS put a video on line in which it states that it has killed 28 men by firing at them point blank or by slitting their throats. It says the men were “faithful” Ethiopians from the “Ethiopian enemy Church”. In February, IS put a video on line showing the murder of 21 Coptic Christians, mainly Egyptians. IS is also persecuting the Yazidi minority in Iraq.
Mogherini's spokesperson talked about the situation in Libya. In the spokesperson's view, “only a political agreement can bring sustainable peace in Libya and help the country to effectively fight against Da'esh [IS] and terrorist organisations that are destabilising the country”. The EU supports the ongoing talks in Morocco on forming a national unity government, saying it is ready to support such a government once it is formed.
Reiterating that the EU supports the regional efforts against terrorism in the Sahel and the Horn of Africa, Mogherini's spokesperson said that “the tasks ahead call for a coordinated effort by national governments, regional organisations and civil society groups”. “We will intensify our efforts to work with the African governments and regional organisations” to fight against terrorism and radicalism, the spokesperson added. The issue will be discussed at the annual joint meeting of the Colleges of the European Commission and the African Union Commission in Brussels on 22 April. (Camille-Cerise Gessant)