Paul Murphy detained and has passport taken by Egyptian authorities again
DUBLIN TD PAUL Murphy has again been detained by authorities in Egypt and has had his passport taken.
Thousands of people, including Murphy, have travelled to Egypt to hold demonstrations at its border with Palestine and take place in the Global March for Gaza. However, Egyptian authorities have detained hundreds of people since.
Murphy's partner, People Before Profit councillor Jess Spear, said that Murphy had attended a Cairo police station on the advice of the Irish embassy to retrieve his phone this morning after it had been taken from him when he was earlier
detained on Friday
.
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Murphy had subsequently been released late on Friday at Cairo Airport.
From the station today, Murphy had messaged to say that he was concerned that his passport had been taken again and 'was told he can't leave. He just attempted to leave but has been prevented from doing so by the police', a statement from People Before Profit said.
Other participants in the Global March to Gaza have also been detained, the statement claimed.
In his message, Murphy wrote: 'They [the police] took my passport again, had me talk to the secret police and left me in a room with an interpreter. They claim they are looking for my phone. I just attempted to leave but they said that I cannot leave. I understand that other march participants have also been detained'.
Spear appealed to Tánaiste Simon Harris to 'intervene urgently with the Egyptian authorities'.
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