Croatia says 2 groups were involved in Salopek’s abduction

The IS radio station said on Thursday that its Egyptian affiliate killed a Croatian hostage, the first word from the extremist group a day after a gruesome image of his beheading circulated online.

The photo carried a caption in Arabic that said Salopek was killed “for his country’s participation in the war against the Islamic State”, and after a deadline had passed for the Egyptian government to meet their demands.

The family of a female Islamist prisoner in Egypt, whose freedom was demanded by the Islamic State in return for Salopek’s life earlier this month, says they are all in shock over the horrific killing of the Croatian hostage.

After worldwide agencies reported that Salopek was probably killed, Prime Minister Zoran Milanović called an emergency press conference at which he stated that he had to break the silence on the case.

Croatia’s President Kolinda Grabar-Kitarovic also spoke of “moments of deep uncertainty”, and her country’s determination to continue to search for Salopek as long as there is a “glimmer of hope”.

“(Egyptian government) detainees be negotiated”.

“We can not 100 percent confirm it is true, but what we see looks horrific”.

Pusic said she has met with representatives of other Croatian citizens working in Egypt and that they are considering stronger security measures for them, including the protection of the Egyptian army.

“The beheading of the Croatian worker underlines an ongoing security issue in Egypt and a persistent threat from Daesh”, Mohammed Abu Roman, an expert on militant groups told Al Arabiya News.

After killing hundreds of soldiers and police officers over the past two years, Egyptian militants have recently mounted more ambitious assaults on the military and, increasingly, attacks on civilian targets. In the clearest sign of the shifting tactics, militants have also tried to attack two of Egypt’s most popular tourist destinations, the pyramids and the Karnak temple at Luxor, and bombed the Italian Consulate. In the video, Salopek, clad in a light beige prison jumpsuit and kneeling in the desert, read from a prepared statement that militants had given him 48 hours to live unless the Egyptian government released “Muslim women” held in jail.

Speaking on condition of anonymity because he wasn’t authorized to talk to journalists, the official said Salopek’s driver, left behind by the kidnappers, said that the gunmen who seized the Croat on a highway just west of Cairo had Bedouin accents. “A confirmation may not come for several days”. IS has released a number of graphic videos showing the beheading of hostages.