Unidentified gunmen abducted Friday evening a Sufi religious leader and others South Sheikh Zuweid city in North Sinai, army source said, adding that they were kidnapped from a prayer area following Maghrib prayers.
Militants of these “extremist” groups reject Sufism, which they view as violating Islamic Sharia, tribal sources said, adding that contents of the prayer area, belonging to the Sufi Ahmadi order, were destroyed.
The gunmen chanted “these are our Eid sacrifices” in reference to the abductees, likening it to the religious Islamic practice of sacrificing animals, such as cows or goats, in Eid al-Adha, eyewitnesses reported.
“Extremists” have blown up several Sufi shrines lately, particularly the Shrine of Sheikh Zuweid thrice since the January uprising in 2011.