Massacre in Egypt Leaves 305 Dead, 128 Wounded

On Friday, Nov. 24, 305 Egyptian civilians were killed and another 128 were wounded in a terrorist attack on a mosque filled with worshippers in the Sinai Peninsula. The attack, carried out by Sunni extremists on the al Rufdaw Sufi mosque in the Sinai Peninsula, is officially the deadliest terror attack in Egyptian history.

According to accounts from survivors, the attack began with 25 to 30 armed extremists arriving in SUV Vans and covering each entrance of the mosque. Next, a wave of explosions and heavy gunfire terrorized the religious men, women and children of the al Rufdaw Mosque. Following the violence, the terrorists arranged an ambush location to fend off ambulances and other emergency services to prevent aid from reaching the victims. Survivors claimed to have seen one attacker with an ISIS flag, but ISIS has yet to claim responsibility for the attack. Reports claim that all attackers involved were wearing military uniforms upon exiting the SUVs. The terrorist organization is believed to have a stronghold north of the Sinai Peninsula.

Sufism, a branch of Islam that promotes finding God within one’s self and separating from material goods, is considered heresy in Islam. Jihadist terrorist organizations, such as al-Qaeda, have carried out a few attacks against Sufi mosques. ISIS, however, relentless with its attacks was aware of the attention attacking such a peaceful mosque would bring to the world.

The President of Egypt, Abdel Fattah el-Sis, was shocked in horror from the attacks, but promised to respond with “brute force.” On Saturday, the Egyptian military carried out a series of bombings on known terrorist vehicles and outposts. According to the military, no terrorist survivors remained from the attacks. Weapons and ammunition were destroyed in the attack as well.

World leaders have reached out in sympathy for Egypt. At St. Peter’s Square, Pope Francis blessed the victims of Egypt and held a memorialized moment of silence for those in the Sinai Peninsula. In the United States, President Trump took to his Twitter account on social media to sympathize for the victims as well as promote his two important policies. As a result of the “tragic loss of life,” Trump stated how it gives more of a reason to implement the Mexico border Wall as well as the Middle Eastern Travel Ban for the sake of National Security and safety of Americans.