New Islamic State video appears to show murder of Ethiopian Christians

The authenticity of the video has yet to be verified, but the killings resemble past violence carried out by Islamic State, an ultra-hardline group which has expanded its reach from strongholds in Iraq and Syria to conflict-ridden Libya. The release of the 29-minute video, in which militants call Christians “crusaders” who are out to kill Muslims, comes a day after Afghanistan’s president blamed the extremists for a suicide attack in his country that killed at least 35 people — and underscores the chaos gripping Libya after its 2011 civil war and the killing of dictator Moammar Gadhafi.

The Islamic State in Libya is still focused on this consolidation phase of announcing its presence through these very high-profile executions.

Frederic Wehrey, from the Middle East Program at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace

Militants professing loyalty to Islamic State have claimed several high-profile attacks on foreigners in Libya this year, including an assault on the Corinthia Hotel in Tripoli and the beheading of 21 Egyptian Christians in February. The video concludes with a warning that Christians will not be safe unless they embrace Islam or pay protection money. Islamic State controls large parts of Iraq and Syria and wants to redraw the map of the Middle East. Its online videos and propaganda, including scenes of its mass killings and beheadings, have caught the attention of many extremists.

World ISIS video