An Israeli businessman who also held Canadian citizenship has been murdered in Egypt.
Some media accounts said that a terrorist group that had been previously unknown claimed credit for the attack, video of which was widely shared on social media. There were also reports the incident began as a robbery.
The Times of Israel reported that Egyptian authorities had taken a man into custody.
Ziv Kipper was shot to death Tuesday in Alexandria.
His widow, Oksana Kipper, said she was told the attack took place because her husband was Jewish.
“He wasn’t robbed,” she said.
Israeli-Canadian businessman murdered in Egypt in apparent antisemitic attack https://t.co/1tofxqAsS6
— The Globe and Mail (@globeandmail) May 8, 2024
Reuters reported that an Egyptian security source claimed the incident was a robbery, not a terrorist attack.
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Egypt has launched a criminal investigation into the shooting, the BBC reported.
Kipper was the CEO of the Egypt-based OK Group LLC, which exports frozen fruits and vegetables, according to the Times. The company has offices in Israel and Ukraine.
A post on Telegram from a group calling itself the Vanguard of Liberation Group for Martyr Mohamed Salah said it killed Kipper because he was a Mossad agent, according to The Jerusalem Post.
“Wait for the next,” the group said in a statement. “Shalom from the children of Gaza.”
Reuters reported that Egyptian security sources said they had nothing to share about the group.
Kipper’s death was “a step on the path of the Egyptian people’s struggle against the Zionist enemy,” the group said, according to the Times.
A group calling itself “Vanguards of Liberation – Martyr Mohammed Salah Groups” claims it murdered an Israeli “agent” in Egypt today.
Mohammed Saleh was an Egyptian police officer who murdered three IDF soldiers near the Israel-Egypt border in June 2023. pic.twitter.com/K7ucUbrLlo— Aleph א (@no_itsmyturn) May 7, 2024
Mohammed Salah Ibrahim killed three Israel Defense Forces soldiers in a June 2023 attack along the Egyptian border.
Global Affairs Canada said that it was “aware of the reports of the death of a Canadian Citizen in Egypt,” according to the Post.
