Canadian demonstrators detained in Egypt during Global March to Gaza

More than 40 Canadians who were taking part in a global march to Gaza have been detained in Egypt and blocked from reaching the border of the war-torn enclave.

The Global March to Gaza is the latest civil society effort pressing for the entry of food, fuel, medical supplies, and other aid into Gaza. Israel imposed a total blockade in March in an attempt to pressure Hamas to disarm and to release hostages taken in Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023, attack that ignited the war in the Gaza Strip.

To draw attention to the humanitarian crisis afflicting people in Gaza, marchers have for months planned to trek about 30 miles (about 50 kilometers) from the city of Arish to Egypt’s border with the enclave on Sunday to “create international moral and media pressure” to open the crossing at Rafah and lift a blockade that has prevented aid from entering.

Egypt had earlier warned that only those who received authorization would be allowed to travel the planned march route, acknowledging it had received “numerous requests and inquiries.”

“Egypt holds the right to take all necessary measures to preserve its national security, including the regulation of the entry and movement of individuals within its territory, especially in sensitive border areas,” its foreign ministry said in a statement on Wednesday.

OMNI News spoke to two Canadians minutes after they were detained by police and forced onto a bus in northeastern Egypt.

“Some people were stopped in their hotels, some people had been followed for a large portion of the morning. Some people were stopped while they were in Ubers, some people were stopped in cafes. It’s really been unpredictable as to what to expect as it’s happening everywhere,” said Afnan Kaid, a student at Saint Paul University in Ottawa, who was one of the thousands of activists from around the world who had flown to Egypt to take part in the march.

The movement is aimed at breaking the Israeli blockade that’s stopping food and supplies from flowing into Gaza. Kaid says she was one of those in an Uber that was pulled over by officers, who demanded to see her passport.

A second member of the Canadian delegation also claims his documents were seized even though he had a legal visa to visit Egypt.

“We violated zero Egyptian rules-zero Egyptian rules,” said Ammar Afaneh. “Even the police officers we talked to, we asked them, ‘did we do anything wrong?’ And they said no, we just have orders. Then they shoved us into this bus, without our passports, and now we’re going somewhere – God knows where – without our passports.”

Ammar adds that the group has heard from other Canadians who were randomly dropped off “in the middle of nowhere” and that they had lost contact with them.

Roughly 4,000 volunteers from more than 80 countries are taking part in the march and protest.

Both Canadians are calling on the federal government to take action after they were seized in Egypt. Global Affairs Canada has been advising Canadians to avoid all travel to northeast Egypt and to Gaza.

Files from The Associated Press were used in this report