National Mourning to be declared – Ethiopian Muslims,UK Copts, White House issued statements

Ethiopian parliament will convene tomorrow to declare a three-day National mourning for Ethiopian victims in Libya and South Africa, Minister Redwan Husien told Horn Affairs.

Federal and State flags will be flown half-mast in period of national mourning throughout the nation and Ethiopian embassies and vessels abroad.

The mourning comes following a series of tragedies in the past week.

At least one Ethiopian was killed by xenophobic attacks in South Africa which targeted African immigrants following incitements by irresponsible public figures of that nation.

Yesterday, the Libyan branches of Islamic State released a video showing the executions of dozens of men captioned as “the worshippers of the cross belonging to the Ethiopian Church”.New Picture (32)

Ethiopians and friends of Ethiopia have been expressing their outrage since then. Social media exploded with condemnations and condolences.

The Ethiopian Orthodox Church’s Holy Synod strongly denounced the murder of Christians in Libya, noting that it is still trying to verify the identity of the victims. The Church pledged to do all necessary to the dead as per her cannons. It emphasized the perpetrators are terrorists and do not represent any religion.

Ethiopian Islamic Affairs Supreme Council issued a statement denouncing the massacre. President of the Council, Mohammed Awol Umer Jamal, called the Libyan Massacre “anti-Islam” and barbaric. He asserted that religion won’t divide Ethiopians when it comes to protecting their country.

The White House issued a prompt statement at dawn, (Sunday evening Washington time) condemning “the brutal mass murder purportedly of Ethiopian Christians by ISIL-affiliated terrorists in Libya” “in the strongest terms”. National Security Council Spokesperson Bernadette Meehan said:

“We express our condolences to the families of the victims and our support to the Ethiopian government and people as they grieve for their fellow citizens. That these terrorists killed these men solely because of their faith lays bare the terrorists’ vicious, senseless brutality.”

The Coptic Orthodox Church in the United Kingdom has also issued a formal statement this morning through its head. General Bishop Angaelos said: “The confirmation of the murder of Ethiopian Christians by Daesh (IS) in Libya has been received with deep sadness.”

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Editor note: Any forthcoming relevant statements and condolences will be appended to this post.

Please read previous posts.

Daniel Berhane

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