Egyptian authorities detain over 200 protesters planning to march to Gaza border

Egyptian authorities have detained more than 200 anti-Israel and pro-Palestinian activists in Cairo ahead of an international march with the stated aim of breaking the blockade on Gaza, organizers say.

As part of the Global March to Gaza, thousands of activists planned to travel to Egypt’s Rafah border crossing with the Palestinian enclave on Friday to demand the entry of humanitarian aid.

The march’s spokesperson Saif Abukeshek tells AFP: “Over 200 participants were detained at Cairo airport or questioned at hotels across Cairo.”

He adds that those detained included nationals from the United States, Australia, the Netherlands, France, Spain, Morocco and Algeria.

Abukeshek said that plainclothes police entered hotels in Cairo on yesterday with lists of names, questioned activists and in some cases confiscated mobile phones and searched personal belongings.

“After interrogations, some were arrested and others were released,” he adds.

At Cairo airport, some detainees were held for long hours without explanation, Abukeshek said, adding that others were deported, without specifying exact numbers.

Twenty French activists who had planned to join the march were held at Cairo airport “for 18 hours,” he says.

“What happened was completely unexpected,” Abukeshek says.

Footage shared with AFP shows dozens of people with their luggage crammed inside a holding room at the airport.

Cairo’s security chief does not respond to an AFP request for comment.

Another convoy dubbed Soumoud, or steadfastness in Arabic, left the Tunisian capital on Monday, hoping to pass through divided Libya and Egypt — which organizers say has yet to provide passage permits — to reach Gaza.

The Global March to Gaza, which is coordinating with Soumoud, said around 4,000 participants from more than 40 countries will take part in the event, with many having already arrived ahead of tomorrow’s march.

According to the plan, participants are set to travel by bus to the city of El-Arish in the heavily securitized Sinai Peninsula before walking 50 kilometers (30 miles) toward the border with Gaza.

They will then camp there before returning to Cairo on June 19.

Israel has called on Egyptian authorities “to prevent the arrival of jihadist protesters to the Egypt-Israel border.”

In response, Egypt’s foreign ministry said that while it backs efforts to put “pressure on Israel,” any foreign delegations visiting the border area must receive approval through official channels.

The Sinai Peninsula is a tightly controlled security zone, with access routes frequently punctuated by military and police checkpoints.