IS-linked group claims killing of American in Egypt

Cairo, Dec 2: An Egyptian militant group that pledged allegiance to the Islamic State organisation last month has claimed it was behind the killing of an American oil worker in Aug 2014.

"We claim the murder of American oilman William Henderson in the Western Desert" of Egypt, Ansar Beit al-Maqdis said on Twitter.

The message was accompanied by pictures of Henderson's work identity cards and his passport, without providing any more details.

Egyptian security sources contacted by AFP today said police had received information that jihadists had killed Henderson in August.

Henderson, who worked for the US oil company Apache, was slain near his workplace in the Western Desert, the sources added.

According to US media reports that cited Henderson's obituary and employer, the 58-year-old had been killed in a carjacking while working in the Karama oil field on August 6.

Ansar Beit al-Maqdis, which pledged allegiance to IS in November, is based in the Sinai Peninsula and has been designated a "terrorist organisation" in Egypt. It has killed scores of police and soldiers in the North African country since the army ousted Islamist president Mohamed Morsi in July last year.

AFP