Sunni Muslim men pray over the bodies of eight out of 12 fellow Iraqis, who were reportedly kidnapped on October 17 and later some of them found shot dead, during their burial ceremony in the Farhatiya area of the Balad region, located 70 kilometres (around 45 miles) north of Baghdad in the Salaheddin province, on October 18, 2020. AFP
Egypt condemned on Tuesday the abduction and killing of eight Iraqis in Iraq’s Sunni-majority Salahuddin province, a statement by the foreign ministry read.
Egyptian foreign ministry spokesman Ahmed Hafez denounced the “heinous terrorist attack,” expressing the ministry’s condolences for the families of the victims and the Iraqi government and people.
“Egypt stresses its support for [measures] taken by the Iraqi government to combat all forms of terrorism to preserve the safety and stability of Iraq and the safety of its citizens,” Hafez said.
The statement comes a few days after images appeared on social media showing the corpses of eight Sunni Iraqis murdered in a sectarian-linked killing after they were abducted from Salahuddin province, northwest of the capital Baghdad.
Twelve men had been kidnapped, according to media reports, and the whereabouts of the remaining four are unknown.
Iraqi Prime Minister Mustafa Al-Kadhimi vowed that there would be consequences for the assailants of the crime.
There has been no claim of responsibility for the killings.
Iraq has seen several assassinations in recent months, most notably the killing of counterterrorism expert Hisham Al-Hashimi in July.
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