Kidnapping and murder of Ihab el-Sherif

Ihab el-Sherif
Born	January 1954
Disappeared	July 3, 2005 Baghdad, Iraq
Died	July 6–7, 2005
Nationality	Egyptian
Known for	Victim of al-Qaeda kidnapping and execution

Ihab el-Sherif (January 1954 – July 2005) was an Egyptian diplomat who served as Egypt's ambassador to Iraq until Iraqi kidnappers murdered him in July 2005. He had previously served as Egypt's chargé d'affaires to Israel.

Kidnapping and death

El-Sherif was abducted on July 3, 2005, when he stepped out of his car in Baghdad to buy a newspaper.^[1]

The al-Qaeda in Iraq organization, run by Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, once Iraq's most wanted militant, posted a message on the internet on July 6, 2005, which stated: "The Islamic court of the al-Qaeda Organization in the Land of Two Rivers has decided to refer the ambassador of the state of Egypt, an ally of the Jews and the Christians, to the mujahideen so that they can execute him." Earlier that day, the group had posted photos of Sherif's identification cards.^[2]

On July 7, 2005, al-Qaeda in Iraq uploaded to the internet a video of Sherif blindfolded, giving his name and address and acknowledging that he once worked as a diplomat in Israel. The video was accompanied by an announcement that el-Sherif had been killed, claiming that "the verdict of God against the ambassador of the infidels, the ambassador of Egypt, has been carried out". His death was subsequently confirmed by the Egyptian government.^[3]

Arrests

On July 14, 2005, United States troops arrested Khamis Farhan Khalaf and al-Fahdawi, the alleged al-Qaida leader suspected to be responsible for Sherif's murder.^[4]

See also

• List of kidnappings
• List of solved missing person cases
• List of unsolved murders

References

1. "Kidnapped Egyptian diplomat killed in Iraq". www.iol.co.za. Retrieved 2021-07-30.
2. "Al-Qaeda threatens to kill abducted Egyptian envoy". Middle East Online. July 6, 2005. Archived from the original on December 30, 2014. Retrieved November 28, 2013.
3. "Captors kill Egypt envoy to Iraq". BBC News. July 8, 2005.
4. "Suspected leaders of al Qaeda in Iraq captured". CNN.

External links

• Department of Defense press release
• Interview in his office in Israel on YouTube by Leon Charney on The Leon Charney Report. October 28, 2001