Minister asked to comment on detention of TD Paul Murphy in Egypt
The partner of Paul Murphy, who was detained in Egypt, has called on the Foreign Affairs Minister to make a statement on the matter.
People Before Profit-Solidarity TD Mr Murphy said he had been detained in Egypt while attempting to march to the Rafah crossing into Gaza as part of a large demonstration and effort to get aid into the region.
Advertisement
The opposition politician said his phone and passport were confiscated on Friday before being put on a bus to Cairo airport for deportation.
Kess Spear and Paul Murphy (Grainne Ni Aodha/PA)
His partner, Councillor Jess Spear, appealed to Foreign Affairs Minister and Tánaiste Simon Harris to make a public statement.
In a statement, she said: 'Paul was detained for hours this afternoon and forced onto a bus to be brought to Cairo airport for deportation. Paul's phone has been taken, but he was allowed to call me briefly this evening.'
She added: 'It is a serious matter for a member of the Dáil to be detained in Egypt and forcibly deported just because he was participating in a peaceful march to try and get humanitarian aid into starving people in Gaza.
Advertisement
'I appeal to the Tánaiste to make a public statement calling on the Egyptian authorities to release Paul and all the others detained and to let them continue their humanitarian mission to Gaza.'
Mr Murphy flew to Cairo on Thursday and set off towards Gaza on Friday.
Before his phone was taken, he said his passport had been confiscated by the Egyptian army along with the passports of other people in the group who were stopped.
My bus and group of marchers has been stopped by the Egyptian authorities and our passports taken.
They are telling us to get on a bus, but it is not clear where they will take us. We fear they intend to report us to stop us from marching to Gaza.
pic.twitter.com/S2h5cCeviC
— Paul Murphy 🇵🇸 (@paulmurphy_TD)
June 13, 2025
He said those being detained were being asked to board a bus, and he believed they were going to be deported.
Advertisement
Mr Murphy told the PA news agency that several other Irish citizens were among those who have been stopped.
In a video, he said: 'It's looking worrying that the Egyptian authorities are going to act to prevent our peaceful march to Gaza, to demand that Israel's blockade of humanitarian aid, of food, of water, of medical supplies, is ended.
'I'm just asking people to redouble their efforts, to get on to your own government, in Ireland's case get on to (Foreign Affairs Minister) Simon Harris, your local TD, ask them to pressurise the Egyptian regime to allow us to engage in our peaceful march.'
He added: 'The world has watched a horrific genocide for the past 20 months. Since March, a total attempt of starvation.
Advertisement
'And that this is a peaceful march to demand that it be ended and demand that Western governments stop their complicity.'
Mr Murphy then posted a livestream video on X in which Egyptian authorities could be seen forcibly dragging some of the participants away from a sit-down protest.
The livestream abruptly ended after his phone was taken, a People Before Profit spokesman said, adding that he had been put on a bus for Cairo airport.
A post by an administrator on his X account says: 'We urgently need Minister for Foreign Affairs Simon Harris to intervene, demand he is freed, his passport and phone returned and the protesters are allowed to peacefully march to Gaza.'
Advertisement
On request for a comment, a spokesman for Mr Harris referred to a statement from the Department of Foreign Affairs.
The statement said the department was 'closely monitoring the situation' along with its embassy in Egypt.
'Embassy officials are engaging with the relevant local authorities and are in contact with EU and other partners regarding the situation.
Tánaiste Simon Harris (Liam McBurney/PA)
'The department is in contact with a number of citizens and is providing advice and guidance.
'As set out in our travel advice, the vicinity of the Rafah border crossing is particularly dangerous at the moment and the border crossing is currently closed.'
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Guardian
30 minutes ago
- The Guardian
Israel claims it has gained control of airspace over Tehran
Israel has claimed to have gained control of the skies over the Iranian capital and warned that 'Tehran will burn' if more missiles are fired at its territory, but the Iranian leadership remained defiant, vowing a 'more severe and powerful response' and threatened to widen the war by striking ships and bases of Israeli allies. The mutual threats reflected the risks of a dramatic escalation in the conflict, as US-Iranian negotiations planned before the war in Oman were abandoned after Tehran said they would be 'meaningless', and Israel appeared to target Iran's gas industry. Israeli rhetoric reflected its leaders' growing confidence that they have gained the upper hand, and raised questions over whether Israeli war aims could go beyond the stated objective of crippling Iran's nuclear programme. The threat to destroy Tehran was delivered by Israel's defence minister, Israel Katz, after Iran responded to the surprise Israeli attack on Friday morning with a barrage of several hundred ballistic missiles and drones, a small percentage of which succeeded in penetrating Israeli defences and killed three people in Tel Aviv and Rishon LeZion. Katz, whose forces have already razed large parts of Gaza, held Iran's supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, responsible for Tehran's fate. 'The Iranian dictator is taking the citizens of Iran hostage, bringing about a reality in which they, and especially Tehran's residents, will pay a heavy price for the flagrant harm inflicted upon Israel's citizens,' Katz said. 'If Khamenei continues to fire missiles at the Israeli home front, Tehran will burn.' The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) targeted the air defences around the capital city on Saturday morning and became increasingly confident they had achieved complete air superiority and freedom of action. 'The aerial roadTehran is effectively open,' an IDF official said. Later in the day, Benjamin Netanyahu said: 'In the very near future, you will see Israeli air force jets over the skies of Tehran.' Air force warplanes, the Israeli prime minister said, would target 'any site and any target of the Ayatollah regime', after dealing a 'real blow' to Iran's nuclear programme. A few hours later, Iranian media reported a 'massive explosion' at a refinery in the port city of Kangan, linked to the South Pars gas field, the world's largest. The media reports said it had been struck by an Israeli drone, which would be the first attack on Iran's oil and gas industry, a development with potentially huge economic and environmental consequences. The IDF did not immediately comment on the attack, and Iran's oil ministry said the resulting fire had been extinguished by late evening. Iranian leaders maintained a defiant front. The president, Masoud Pezeshkian, pledged that continued Israeli attacks would produce a 'more severe and powerful response', the new Revolutionary Guards commander vowed his forces would 'open the gates of hell' on Israel, and Iranian state media quoted officials as warning the US, UK and France that their military bases and ships will be targeted if they helped shoot down Iran's missiles and drones. The US and France have already stated their readiness to defend Israel, and American media reports have suggested that US forces have already been in action. The UK government has said its forces had not provided any military assistance to Israel and the prime minister, Keir Starmer, has emphasised the need for de-escalation. Following through on the threat would be an enormous gamble for Iran, drawing western forces further into the conflict when it is already reeling under the force of sustained Israeli bombing. Speaking at a session of the UN security council on Friday, the US diplomat McCoy Pitt warned: 'No government proxy or independent actor should target American citizens, American bases or other American infrastructure in the region. The consequences for Iran would be dire.' At the same time, Israel's air defences have shown themselves capable of minimising the danger posed by Iranian missiles and drones. The IDF said Iran had so far fired about 200 ballistic missiles at Israel and launched more than that number of drones but claimed the overwhelming majority had been intercepted. The Iranian response has also been further blunted by Israel's targeted killing of Tehran's senior generals, almost completely wiping out the top echelons of the chain of the command. On Saturday, the IDF claimed to have killed two more: the head of intelligence for the armed forces, Gholam-Reza Marhabi, and the commander of the Revolutionary Guards' ballistic missile arm, Mohammad Hossein Bagheri. In total since the start of the war, the IDF said Israeli warplanes had attacked 150 targets inside Iran with hundreds of munitions. Iranian state media said that a fighter jet hangar at Tehran's Mehrabad airport had also been targeted. Iran's state TV said about 60 people, including 20 children, had been killed in an attack on a housing complex in Tehran. Iran's envoy to the UN security council, Amir Saeid Iravani, said on Friday that 78 people had been killed in the Israeli attacks, and that more than 320 were injured, most of them civilians. Alongside Iran's top generals there were nine nuclear scientists among the dead, as Tehran was caught unawares by the Israeli assault. An IDF official described the targeted scientists as the 'people who were main sources of knowledge, the main forces advancing the nuclear programme'. The Iranian government also said there was limited damage at its uranium enrichment plant at Fordow, its second enrichment facility but Israel denied having bombed it. . On Friday, the IDF claimed to have inflicted 'significant damage' at the plant at Natanz. The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) confirmed the above-ground part of the Natanz plant had been destroyed but noted no apparent damage to its underground chambers. An IAEA report said that attacks caused radiological and chemical contamination in the Natanz facility, but that it was manageable and there was no sign of higher radiation in the area around the plant. Iran also said there had been attacks on its nuclear site in Isfahan, which houses a uranium conversion plant, a fuel production unit and other facilities. The IAEA reminded Israel that attacks on nuclear sites were illegal and contrary to the UN charter, with a potential to cause 'radioactive releases with grave consequences'. Israel's justification for its attack on Iran was that the country was getting unacceptably close to acquiring a nuclear weapon, and specifically that it was working on weaponisation, the assembly of components into a warhead. That is a claim not found in US intelligence assessments or in IAEA reports. An IDF official on Saturday gave more details of Israel's allegation, claiming that Iranian technicians had been working on an explosive trigger mechanism for a nuclear bomb, and that part of that work was being done in Isfahan. 'We have seen clear intelligence indicating that they are taking steps forward rapidly, that cannot be understood in any other way than for a nuclear bomb,' the official said. Israelis in Tel Aviv and other cities spent the dawn hours on Saturday in shelters as a new barrage of Iranian missiles headed towards them, while the IDF said it had intercepted incoming drones in the skies above the Dead Sea. Later in the morning, sirens went off in the West Bank and in northern Israel, near the Sea of Galilee. The worst casualties from the incoming missiles were in the West Bank, where five Palestinians, including three children, were killed, according to the Palestinian Red Crescent, reportedly by a projectile fired by Houthi forces in Yemen, who are Iranian allies. Over the first 24 hours of the conflict, three Israelis were also killed, two in Rishon LeZion and one in nearby Tel Aviv, with dozens injured and extensive damage to buildings. There were reports from Gaza of Israeli shooting of large numbers of Palestinians trying to reach food distribution points, but details were hard to confirm on the third day of a communications blackout after the severing of a critical cable by Israeli forces. The few missiles that pierced Israel's defences caused significant damage but few fatalities. In Tel Aviv on Friday night, smoke from one impact site rose up in columns so thick they obscured the city skyline. Israel's ambulance service said 34 people were injured on Friday night in the Tel Aviv area, most with minor injuries. Police later said one person had died. Another two people were confirmed killed in a direct missile strike on central Israel on Saturday morning. The Israeli leadership and the IDF have insisted that its offensive against Iran, called Rising Lion, would continue until Tehran's nuclear programme – which Netanyahu said was on the brink of producing weapons – was comprehensively destroyed. Addressing the UN security council, the IAEA director-general, Rafael Grossi, warned of the potentially disastrous consequences of such attacks. The US role in the Israeli operation remained murky. In the run-up to the Israeli 200-plane attack, Donald Trump had publicly urged Israel to give diplomacy more of a chance before US-Iranian talks that were planned for Sunday. On Friday, the US president insisted he had been well informed of Israel's plans and described the Israeli attack as 'excellent'. ABC quoted a 'source familiar with the intelligence' as saying the US had provided 'exquisite' intelligence and would help defend Israel as needed.
Telegraph
2 hours ago
- Telegraph
Fears British foreign aid used to teach Gaza children to wage jihad
David Lammy is facing calls to withhold foreign aid from the Palestinian Authority over fears it is being used to teach children to wage jihad against Israel. The Foreign Secretary has been urged to use Britain's 'financial and diplomatic muscle' to demand the withdrawal of extremist textbooks from schools in Gaza. It comes as a new report by an Israeli-founded non-profit organisation reveals that materials being taught to pupils feature anti-Semitic tropes and violent imagery. The dossier identifies one volume in which 'the liberation of Palestine' is presented to children as a 'personal obligation for every Muslim'. Others present martyrdom in a positive light and depict suicide bombings in graphic detail, talking about killing soldiers and wearing explosive belts. Some of the textbooks glorify terrorists as heroes, prompting MPs to express concern about the Palestinian Authority's suitability to run a Palestinian state. The Government insisted that no foreign aid went directly towards textbooks in Gaza and said it condemned the use of materials that incited violence. In April, ministers signed off on a £101 million aid package and accompanying agreement, which included commitments to cooperate on education. Labour also restored UK funding to UNRWA, the UN agency which funds its own schools in Gaza, including teacher salaries. Andrew Mitchell, a former Tory international aid secretary, said 'widespread concern about the contents of Palestinian textbooks must be fully addressed as swiftly as possible'. 'The importance of education in promoting tolerance and empathy and breaking the cycle of inter-generational violence is an essential requirement for the peace essential to a two-state solution,' he said. Last month, the EU parliament voted for a motion to freeze funding to the Palestinian Authority (PA) until it reforms the curriculum taught in Gaza. MEPs said it was 'our responsibility to ensure that European taxpayer money promotes coexistence, respect for human rights and mutual understanding'. Luke Akehurst, a Labour MP, said the latest revelations represented a 'persistent pattern in the Palestinian Authority's education curriculum'. 'Textbooks which teach children to celebrate terrorists as 'heroes', promote violence and 'martyrdom', and preach hate against Jews make a mockery of the principles of Unesco standards of peace and tolerance to which the PA is supposed to be committed,' he said. 'If we are ever to see an end to the tragic conflict between the Palestinians and Israel, fundamental shifts in attitude are required on both sides. 'These revelations bring into question the PA's preparedness at the very moment they need to step up to leadership for a more peaceful future free from Hamas.' The report on Palestinian textbooks was compiled by the Institute for Monitoring Peace and Cultural Tolerance in School Education (IMPACT-se). It is a non-profit organisation which has offices in London and Israel. IMPACT-se said it had analysed 313 textbooks and teacher guides used across all age grades in Gaza as part of its research. The materials are used in schools run by Hamas and the Palestinian Authority in both Gaza, which is Hamas-run, and the West Bank, it said. Marcus Sheff, the chief executive at IMPACT-se, warned that 'for far too long, UK taxpayers' money has been used to teach Palestinian children to despise Jews, encourage violent jihad and breed the next generation of martyrs'. He added: 'If the UK Government is serious about helping forge a lasting peace, then continuing to finance Palestinian hate education is possibly the worst course of action imaginable. 'Foreign Secretary David Lammy must deploy the UK's financial and diplomatic muscle to ensure that the Palestinian Authority halts this curriculum of hate, which is also being openly taught in UN-run schools. 'Failure to do so would condemn Palestinian children to a future of hatred and violence, while also laying the foundations for the next horrific act of terror.' A spokesman for the Foreign Office, which oversees the foreign aid budget, said: 'No UK funding goes to textbooks in the Occupied Palestinian Territories, and we completely condemn the use of education materials which incite hatred, violence, or antisemitism.'
North Wales Chronicle
4 hours ago
- North Wales Chronicle
Irish citizens released from detention in Egypt
Simon Harris also expressed deep concern over escalating tensions in the Middle East after Iran bombarded Israel with hundreds of missiles overnight in retaliation for Israeli strikes on its nuclear bases. Mr Harris, who is also the Irish foreign affairs minister, held calls with Ireland's ambassadors to Israel, Iran and Egypt on Saturday morning. He said he had been briefed on developments and all embassy staff are 'safe and well'. Mr Harris called for de-escalation and a return to diplomacy, adding: 'This is a dangerous moment for the Middle East. I am deeply concerned about the continuing exchange of air attacks between Israel and Iran.' He also spoke with a politician who has been released from detention in Egypt. Paul Muphy, a TD (MP) for People Before Profit-Solidarity, had been detained on Friday while attempting to march to the Rafah crossing into Gaza as part of a large demonstration and effort to get aid into the region. The opposition politician said his phone and passport were confiscated before he and others were put on a bus to Cairo airport, where they believed they would be deported. Mr Murphy and party representatives urged Mr Harris and the Department of Foreign Affairs to intervene. We were finally released late last night at airport. Police still have our phones. We are back in Cairo and meeting shortly to decide next steps. We're focused on Israel's genocide and starvation of Gaza. Thanks for your support. Free Palestine 🇵🇸 🇵🇸🇵🇸#GlobalMarchToGaza — Paul Murphy 🇵🇸 (@paulmurphy_TD) June 14, 2025 All Irish people who were detained have since been released, but some have not had their phones returned. In a statement on Saturday, Mr Murphy said: 'We were finally released late last night at airport. Police still have our phones. 'We are back in Cairo and meeting shortly to decide next steps. We're focused on Israel's genocide and starvation of Gaza. 'Thanks for your support. Free Palestine.' Mr Harris said: 'I am pleased that following the work of our embassy staff, all Irish people who were detained yesterday in Rafah have been released and have had their passports returned. 'I spoke directly to Deputy Murphy to confirm he and other Irish people have been released from detention, had their passports returned and were receiving consular assistance. The wellbeing and safety of all Irish citizens abroad is always of concern to me and to my department. 'I am aware some Irish citizens have not had their phones returned by the authorities and I have asked our embassy to pursue this.' Mr Murphy's partner, councillor Jess Spear, expressed 'relief' that the group had been released from detention. She said: 'However, they still want to reach Rafah to try and get humanitarian aid into Gaza. That has been the sole purpose of being in Egypt. 'Paul has appealed to Tanaiste Simon Harris to put pressure on the Egyptian authorities to let the marchers reach Rafah. The situation of the people of Gaza worsens by the day as they suffer starvation imposed by Israel. 'We need to get humanitarian aid to them as quickly as possible.' Mr Harris said embassies remain in close contact with members of the Irish community to offer assistance, adding that his department is working closely with European counterparts. 'My department continues to advise against all travel to Iran and Israel for Irish citizens. 'Irish citizens in the region are advised to be vigilant and to follow the advice of local authorities, including any orders to shelter in place.'
