A LIMERICK woman was among 200 people detained, questioned, and deported by Egyptian authorities ahead of a planned peaceful march to the Rafah crossing on the Gaza border.
Nora Casey, from Foynes in County Limerick, and the group she was travelling with were immediately met by Egyptian authorities upon landing in Cairo yesterday morning (Thursday, June 12).
She is one of three Irish people on their way to the march who were detained and deported by Egyptian authorities.
Ms Casey, who only made the decision to travel last weekend, is one of several Limerick people who travelled to join the March to Gaza, a peaceful initiative calling for the immediate humanitarian access to the besieged region and an end to the 19-month conflict in Gaza.
Speaking to the Limerick Post, Nora explained the group was detained in Cairo International Airport upon their arrival on Thursday (June 12) for several hours.
“I am very disappointed to miss the walk to Rafah, it is going to be so powerful,” Nora told this newspaper, who is travelling home to Limerick.
“During my flight from Istanbul to Cairo, I sat down beside Katja van Rennes, whose brother Mark van Rennes was in the Freedom Flotilla and was detained by the IDF. She decided to go out in solidarity with her brother, but unfortunately, she also got deported.”
Mr van Rennes, the Dutch captain of the Freedom Flotilla, has since been released, with his lawyers confirming on social media that he will arrive at Schiphol Airport in Amsterdam today (Friday).
Ms Casey said the group was met with “hostility” by the Egyptian Authorities upon landing, who she claims detained the would-be marchers without access to food, water, access to a bathroom, or any means of communication to the outside world.
When they asked why they were being detained, Nora says the group was told it was for “national security” reasons.
Videos shared with this paper showed the group in high spirits during their detention, waving the Palestinian flag and chanting “Free Palestine”.
According to the Global March to Gaza website, participants plan to gather in Cairo this Friday morning, before travelling by bus to Al Arish, where they will begin their 48km march to Palestinian territory north of Egypt’s Sinai region.
“Over the course of two to three days, we’ll walk in solidarity toward Rafah,” the website says.
Demonstrators have said they do not plan to try and enter Gaza and will camp at the border for three days before returning to Cairo on June 19.
The organisation also issued an urgent statement on their Instagram page stating that the “Global March continues despite about 170 people facing delays and deportations at Cairo airport”.
“Our legal services are working on these cases, as we have all complied with all the legal requirements of the Egyptian authorities. Meanwhile, thousands of march participants are already in Egypt, ready to begin the journey to El Arish and then continue on foot to Rafah, where we hope to arrive this Sunday.
“We hope to be able to work alongside the Egyptian Government as a key and valued partner. Our priorities are the same: demanding the end of the Palestinian genocide.”
