Libya: 5 missing Barqa TV crew members 'killed by Isis'

The bodies of five members from a Libyan TV crew have been found eight months after they were reportedly captured by Islamic State (Isis) militants.

Libya government spokesperson Hatem al-Aribi confirmed the bodies of the Barqa TV network crew members were discovered near the eastern city of Bayda.

A sixth TV crew member who was also abducted with the rest of the group in August 2014 is said to have fled, with his whereabouts not known.

Faraj al-Barassi, a district army commander in eastern Libya, said the crew members – four Libyans and one Egyptian – were found with "slit throats" in the Green Mountain forests.

Brussels-based International Federation of Journalists (IFJ), a group promoting press freedom, said the reporters had been kidnapped at an IS checkpoint and were killed "recently".

"We are deeply shocked by this brutal slaughter," said IFJ president Jim Boumelha. "[IS] aims to horrify but we can only feel great sorrow and further resolve to see the killers held responsible for their crimes."

The men were captured while travelling to their hometown of Ajdabiya after covering the opening of the parliament in Tobruk. The city of Bayda, where their bodies were found, has become the home of Libya's international recognised government ever since the capital Tripoli was taken over by an Islamist-dominated coalition in 2014.

Libya's elected parliament, the House of Representatives, has also been based in the east since August 2014.

Hundreds of thousands of people have been displaced during the ongoing battle between the government and militias. During this time, IS has been able to take hold of several cities such as Darna and Sirte, as well as areas of Syria and Iraq.