On Wednesday, "Sinai Province," the Egyptian affiliate of the "Islamic State," claimed to have beheaded a Croatian man kidnapped in July, posting a photo on Twitter that appeared to show his body. The group had originally set a deadline of August 7 for Egyptian officials to release female Islamists held in state prisoners in order to save the hostage's life.

"They want to substitute me with Muslim women arrested in Egyptian prisons," Tomislav Salopek, a 30-year-old married father of two, read in a video released by Sinai Province last week. "The soldiers from Wilyat Sinai will kill me," he added.

In recent months, Sinai Province has taken credit for a number of high-profile terrorist attacks in Egypt.

mkg/kms (AFP)