4 foreign nationals unreachable after pro-Palestine protest at Foreign Ministry in Cairo

Four foreign nationals who participated in a peaceful demonstration outside the Foreign Ministry's Cairo headquarters on Thursday afternoon have been unreachable since they were escorted into the building by security personnel almost 12 hours ago, according to a press release by an activist organizing group viewed by Mada Masr. 

Activists gathered on Thursday afternoon to show solidarity with Palestine outside the Foreign Ministry. Four of them tried to enter the ministry’s headquarters to deliver a letter to Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry. The letter requested that the government grant security permissions to the Global Conscience Convoy — a pro-Palestine protest bound for the Rafah border crossing, comprising doctors, journalists, lawyers, and relief workers, some of whom are foreign nationals, who had traveled to Cairo in order to join the rally.

The four activists, who hold Argentinian, Australian, French, and US citizenships, were escorted into the ministry by building security personnel before they abruptly became unreachable at 12:30 pm.

The activists who protested Thursday were operating independently from the organizers of the Global Conscience Convoy, having autonomously formed the group during their stay in Cairo while awaiting the convoy’s security clearance.

During the small protest, demonstrators called on the Egyptian government to open the Rafah border crossing, enable the unhindered flow of humanitarian aid, facilitate the evacuation of injured and sick Palestinians from Gaza and the West Bank, urge the international community to provide necessary medical supplies, support the entry of doctors, journalists, human rights lawyers, and disaster relief teams into Gaza. Lastly, they called for supporting the Palestinian people’s right to resist Israel’s settlement expansion and dispossession of their land.

Gaye Demanuele, the spokesperson for the protest group, emphasized that the obstacles facing the Global Conscience Convoy and other groups waiting in Cairo are indicative of the global colonial governments' unwillingness to stop the genocide unfolding in occupied Palestine.

“These governments refuse to act effectively as their economic, military and border protection interests are aligned with the Zionist state of Israel. Our governments do not speak for us. We are here to resist these inhumane acts and to act in solidarity with the Palestinian people,” she added. 

Two convoys in support of Palestine were due to leave for Rafah this month, as announced by Khaled al-Balshy, the head of the Journalists Syndicate. The first was an aid convoy aiming to collect journalist donations for Gaza and the second was the Global Conscience Convoy. The latter comprised missions from 65 countries, representing 139 organizations, 224 medical sector workers, 133 journalists, 19 public figures, as well as hundreds of advocates.

After facing multiple delays over recent weeks, the organizers announced on November 17 that the date for the Global Conscience Convoy’s departure for Rafah had been postponed indefinitely as they were unable to obtain the necessary security permits. Reasons for the Global Conscience Convoy’s failure to obtain permits were not clarified. They were originally due to depart for Rafah on November 24. Subsequently, a group of Egyptian women journalists organized a protest in front of the Journalists Syndicate, demanding that authorities open the route to Gaza and allow the convoy to pass.

Many other convoys have left for Rafah, including ones affiliated with the electoral campaign of President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi and government-run or aligned charitable and development organizations.