Thousands of traumatized mourners gathered on Monday at the Coptic church in al-Our village south of Cairo, struggling to come to terms with the fate of compatriots who paid a gruesome price for simply seeking work in Libya.

Thirteen of 21 Egyptians beheaded by Islamic State came from the impoverished dirt lanes of al-Our, violence that prompted the Egyptian military to launch an air strike on Islamic State militant targets in Libya.

Black banners hung on the walls of the Church of the Virgin Mary, proclaiming “Egypt rise up, the blood of your martyrs is calling for you to take revenge”. Relatives fainted from grief.

Sheikhs from al Azhar University, the Muslim world’s main centre of Islamic learning, which condemned the beheadings, joined the mourning.

Many could not fathom why men who simply wanted to support their families back home would be butchered by Islamic State, the ultra-orthodox militant group that took over parts of Syria and Iraq and has now expanded its operations to Libya.

“They are not humans. They are monsters. They are holding unarmed people (who) were going to bring bread for their families,” said Father Tawadros, pastor of the church.   »»» Reuters

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