Egypt deports dozens of foreign nationals due to attend Gaza march
Egyptian authorities have deported dozens of foreign nationals who arrived in Egypt to take part in a pro-Palestinian march and dozens more face deportation, according to the organisers, as well as airport and security sources.
Hundreds of people came to Egypt this week for the Global March to Gaza, an international initiative intended to exert pressure for an end to an Israeli blockade of the Palestinian enclave and draw attention to the humanitarian crisis there.
Organisers said people from 80 countries were set to begin the march to Egypt's Rafah Crossing with Gaza tomorrow, which is about 48km, and confirmed some had been deported or were detained at the airport.
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Three airport sources said at least 73 foreign nationals had been deported on a flight to Istanbul, after authorities said they violated entry protocols, and that about 100 more were at the airport awaiting deportation.
The Egyptian Foreign Ministry did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
It had earlier said visits to the Rafah border region must be coordinated in advance with Egyptian embassies or government entities, and underlined the need to follow official procedures to ensure safety and security.
The organisers said in a statement late last night they had complied with all the stated requirements.
"In the two months leading up to the march, organisers coordinated directly with Egyptian embassies in over 15 countries and with the Foreign Ministry to ensure transparency at every stage," the organisers said, urging Egypt to free all those who had been detained.
Israel's defence minister told the Israeli military to prevent demonstrators entering Gaza from Egypt, and said the march was a threat to Israeli and regional security.
Egyptian officials have said the Rafah crossing is closed by Israel on the Gaza side and want international pressure applied on Israel to open it to allow in aid.
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The Journal
6 minutes ago
- The Journal
How did we get here?: Iran's nuclear programme and Israel's attempts to destroy it
WESTERN GOVERNMENTS, PARTICULARLY the United States, have long suspected Iran of seeking to develop nuclear weapons that could act as a counter to the widely suspected but undeclared nuclear arsenal of its arch foe, Israel. After it launched a massive attack on Tehran this morning, Israel said it had targeted nuclear sites with the aim of preventing Iran from developing such weapons. Iran has a nuclear energy programme, but has not been shown to have nuclear weapons. The US has been in negotiations with Iran in recent months over how much uranium can be enriched. Iran currently enriches uranium to 60%, though still short of the 90% needed for a nuclear warhead. Iran insists it is its right to enrich uranium under the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty. Yesterday, the board of governors at the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) censured Iran for the first time in 20 years over its refusal to work with its inspectors. Iran immediately announced it would establish a third enrichment site in the country and swap out some centrifuges for more-advanced ones. 'In recent months, accumulated intelligence information has provided evidence that the Iranian regime is approaching the point of no return,' The Israeli military said in a statement this morning. 'The convergence of the Iranian regime's efforts to produce thousands of kilogrammes of enriched uranium, alongside decentralised and fortified enrichment compounds in underground facilities, enables the Iranian regime to enrich uranium to military-grade levels, enabling the regime to obtain a nuclear weapon within a short period of time,' it added. While the US and its allies have for years attempted to reach an agreement with Iran to prevent its developing nuclear weapons, Israel has forcefully opposed any such compromise. Bitter rivals and broken promises Iran and Israel are two major powers in the Middle East and despite having once had friendly relations – when Iran was a monarchy – the two are now each other's greatest rivals. Israeli leaders cast Iran as their country's greatest adversary and an existential threat to their allies in the West. The US has also sabotaged Iranian nuclear facilities in the past. For decades, Iran's leaders have openly called for the destruction of what they call the 'Little Satan' (Israel), as opposed to the 'Great Satan' (the United States of America), who they see as occupying powers in the Middle East who need to be expelled. Advertisement Israel has assassinated nuclear physicists, generals and Iranian allies over the last four decades or so. 'When we fight Iran, we're fighting the most radical and murderous enemy of the United States of America,' Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a speech to the US Congress in July 2024. 'We're not only protecting ourselves. We're protecting you… Our enemies are your enemy, our fight is your fight, and our victory will be your victory.' Israel has been vociferous in encouraging its allies in Europe and North America to sanction Iran, stoking fears among Western political leaders of what the country could do with access to nuclear weapons. Those concerns led US President Barack Obama, alongside the heads of a number of other countries, to sign an agreement with the Iranian government in 2015, which put limitations on the production of material that could be used to make atomic weapons in exchange for the lifting of sanctions. Israel opposed the deal and Obama's successor Donald Trump reneged on it during his first term in 2018, meaning the sanctions returned. Iran has held five rounds of talks with the United States in search of an agreement to replace the deal Trump tore up in 2018. 'If the issue is nuclear weapons, yes, we too consider this type of weapon unacceptable,' Foreign Minister Abbas, Iran's lead negotiator in the talks, said in a televised speech on 31 May of this year. 'We agree with them on this issue.' Trump has not ruled out military action but said he wants space to make a deal first, and has also said that Israel, and not the United States, would take the lead in any such strikes. Shadow war Over the last few decades, Israel and Iran have traded tit-for-tat attacks in what has been described as a shadow war. The two sides had resisted resorting to outright hostility between their armed forces until an Israeli airstrike killed senior Iranian military figures in an embassy in the Syrian capital of Damascus in April 2024, which prompted Iran to launch hundreds of drones and missiles at Israel, most of which were shot down with Western support. In July 2024, Israel then assassinated Ismail Haniyeh, the political leader of Hamas, while he was visiting Tehran, stirring more fears of a full-scale war between the two regional powers that could involve the US, the UK, France and other Western states. Those fears were exacerbated once again when Israel killed Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah – a close ally of Iran – in September last year. Iran launched almost 200 rockets at Israel in return and Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu promised Tehran would pay. Today's attacks were described by Iran as 'a declaration of war'. Readers like you are keeping these stories free for everyone... A mix of advertising and supporting contributions helps keep paywalls away from valuable information like this article. Over 5,000 readers like you have already stepped up and support us with a monthly payment or a once-off donation. Learn More Support The Journal
The Irish Sun
9 minutes ago
- The Irish Sun
How Israel decapitated Iran's military & nuke programme in just ONE NIGHT as years of planning revealed by IDF insiders
ISRAEL'S audacious blitz of Iran that killed top generals and targeted its nuclear sites took years of planning, IDF sources have revealed. Intelligence agents spent months tracking senior commanders before taking them down in pinpoint strikes in the dead of night. 10 Smoke rises above Tehran after an attack by Israel Credit: AP 10 Incredible images appear to show Mossad commandos inside Iran 10 Smoke billows from a building in Tehran after the Israeli air strike Credit: AFP 10 Israel dealt a major blow to Iran's chain of command - with Maj. Gen. Mohammad Bagheri, the second-highest commander after Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei among those eliminated. Revolutionary Guard chief Hossein Salami and Gen. Gholamali Rashid, deputy commander in chief of the armed forces were also wiped out. Their inglorious deaths came as Israel unleashed an unprecedented attack, dubbed Rising Lion, on Iran's nuclear sites - with blasts first heard in Tehran around 3.30am local time (1am BST). Missiles pounded Iran's main nuclear enrichment site, the Natanz atomic facility, and the regime's ballistic missile arsenal. More on Israel-Iran At least six of Iran's top nuclear scientists were killed during the sweeping assault. Iran has already fired around 100 drones at Israel Senior military and political sources in Israel Retired IDF general Miri Eisin today said Israel has been planning to blitz Iran for at least a decade - and this exact plot would have been months in the making. Most read in The Sun Eisin, who advised Benjamin Netanyahu's PM predecessor Ehud Olmert, told The Sun: "[The attack] is years in the making. "But this is something which evolves, meaning it isn't that the specific plan that is still being enacted today is necessarily the one that they started thinking of years ago. Unprecedented vid shows Israeli commandos directing drone strikes from on ground INSIDE Iran to blow up missile bases "But Israel has been planning as a plan to attack the nuclear and projectile facilities for many years because of the Islamic regime's threat. "That plan evolved over the years, meaning you're always looking at what happens in the Islamic regime, the new nuclear sites, the new capabilities that they built, and you have to adapt all of the time." Israel's decision to strike comes after a senior diplomatic source in Jerusalem told The Sun Iran was 'much closer than anyone can be comfortable with' in developing a nuclear weapon. Fears have been rising internationally about Iran's nuclear programme as its progress has become more and more cloak and dagger in recent years. The UN watchdog this week confirmed the country is breaking its obligations for the first time in 20 years. Israel's attack overnight - aimed at diminishing the regime's nuclear threat - was spearheaded by Mossad commandos who smuggled kamikaze drones and precision weapons into Iran. Their daring mission paved the way for Israeli forces to hammer 100 targets using 200 war jets - eliminating military chiefs and scientists and striking atom sites. Which Iranian military chiefs and scientists have been killed? ISRAEL has dealt a major blow to Iran's command chain - wiping out several of its top brass. Key nuclear scientists have also been eliminated in Israel's overnight strikes. Those killed include: Generals Maj. Gen. Mohammad Bagheri , chief of staff of the armed forces and the second-highest commander after Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei Gen. Hossein Salami , commander in chief of the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps Gen. Gholamali Rashid , deputy commander in chief of the armed forces Ali Shamkhan , key adviser and confidant of Khamenei Amir Ali Hajizadeh , commander of the IRGC Aerospace Forces Nuclear scientists Fereydoun Abbasi , the former head of the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran Dr Mohammad Mehdi Tehranchi , theoretical physicist and president of the Islamic Azad University in Tehran Eisin, who served in the IDF for 20 years and has a background in military intelligence, said a combination of different security and intelligence capabilities would have spent months tracking senior commanders. Speaking from Tel Aviv, she said: "You have to find them and you're attacking them all at the exact same time. "So it's putting together that intel picture of where they are and knowing that at that specific time you're getting all of them. "In addition, you have to gather intel on all of the different nuclear sites and air defence sites and projectile sites. Those are three different elements. "It's the intel of knowing where they [commanders] are, and then it's the operational decision of doing it, because you understand that they're all where you want them to be simultaneously. "It is very complex." An IDF source, speaking to The Sun in Israel earlier this year, said its forces had been working for months to clear the path for a major strike on Iran. They told how three air campaigns in Iran have eliminated strategic aerial defences which were 'the main obstacle' protecting the rogue nation's nuke facilities. The insider said the IDF has also worked to significantly downgrade the threat posed by Hamas, Hezbollah and the Houthi - effectively leaving Iran isolated. 10 Iranian weapons systems are blown up by drones 10 A building a that was hit by an Israeli strike in Tehran Credit: AFP 10 Fire burns in a building damaged in an Israeli blast Credit: Reuters Vitally, this allowed Israeli aircraft to get to Iran's borders without fear of being blasted. The overnight attack is just the first phase of what is set to be two weeks of action aimed at ran's atom threat. Ex-military intelligence agent Dr Raz Zimmt, whose work on focussed on Iran , previously told The Sun it But he conceded it would be highly unlikely Iran's nuclear scheme could ever be fully wiped out. "It's too scattered, the knowledge and technology are already inside Iran," Dr Zimmt said. The Sun last month IDF Brigadier General Effie Defrin today confirmed it will be a "long campaign" against Iran - but that the military was "well prepared" to continue until achieving its goal. Eisin said the IDF will be continuing to gather intel and launching pre-emptive attacks. She said: "It isn't that we destroyed everything that Iran has. It's the beginning of the campaign. 10 "I think that we will continue to attack. They will try to attack us. "We have our defence systems, but it isn't over. We're still right at the beginning of this." Israel hoped to coordinate an attack with the US after enraged Donald Trump gave Iran 60 days to thrash out a nuclear deal - a deadline that passed on Wednesday night. Trump had warned Israel not to undermine talks with Tehran that could jeopardise his administration's efforts . But Nadav Shtrauchler, who previously advised Netanyahu, said the PM wanted to cement his legacy. He The Sun: "Eliminating Iran, the head of the snake, is his life mission. "He sees them as the immediate threat and as today's Nazis. "He said that he will not stop until he strikes the head of the snake. "And after so many years of planning it started with a very strong offensive opening. "He planned it and waited for the right timing and I'm sure it was not an easy decision to go without the US - but it had come to a place that we had to do it." The US has publicly distanced itself from the Israeli operation and Trump today urged Iran to make a deal before it's too late. Writing on Truth Social, the president said: "I gave Iran chance after chance to make a deal. "There has already been great death and destruction, but there is still time to make this slaughter, with the next already planned attacks being even more brutal, come to an end. "Iran must make a deal, before there is nothing left." 10 Commander-in-chief of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Hossein Salami was killed Credit: Getty 10 Iranian Armed Forces Chief of Staff Major General Mohammad Bagheri was eliminated Credit: AFP
Irish Examiner
15 minutes ago
- Irish Examiner
Government issues ‘do not travel' alert for Israel after strikes on Iran
The Government is urging people not to travel to Israel, as tensions escalate in the Middle East following Israeli strikes against Iran overnight. The Department of Foreign Affairs has now upgraded its warning for the public, with the security status for Israel now advising that people avoid all travel to the country. Speaking on the News at One, Tánaiste Simon Harris said the 'very clear travel advice now is that no Irish citizen should travel to Israel'. 'We already had such travel advice in place in relation to Iran and today we're extending that in relation to Israel. Mr Harris said there is currently an Irish diplomatic presence in Iran, which the Government is in 'close contact' with. He said there are around 17 Irish people living in Iran who are known to Irish officials in the country. 'This is an extraordinarily dangerous and volatile time, and I'd encourage all Irish citizens to heed [the Government's] advice.' Earlier Taoiseach Micheál Martin added his voice to growing international concern, calling for restraint and a renewed focus on diplomacy. 'I am deeply concerned by the airstrikes on Iran,' Mr Martin said. 'I call on all in the Middle East to exercise the utmost restraint and to avoid further escalation. The region and the world need stability. Diplomacy must be the only way forward.' His comments echo those of the Tánaiste, who earlier warned that continued escalation risked a 'regional spillover' that could prove disastrous for communities across the Middle East. In a statement issued this morning, Mr Harris said the Middle East "desperately needs peace and stability" and that further escalation could lead to a broader regional conflict. He called on all parties to show restraint and urged those with influence to use it to help de-escalate tensions. 'A negotiated solution is needed to address Iran's nuclear programme,' he added. Read More Trump urges Iran to make deal after Israel blasts nuclear and military targets
