Latest news with #MarchtoGaza
IOL News
2 days ago
- Politics
- IOL News
Global March to Gaza: Thousands rally for humanitarian access despite Egyptian warnings
Participants in the March to Gaza are waved goodbye as they depart from Schiphol Airport for Egypt. Image: Ramon van Flymen / ANP MAG / ANP via AFP Thousands from across the globe have made their way to Cairo, Egypt, ahead of the Global March to Gaza, set to begin on June 13. The initiative, backed by over 300 international organisations from civil society, labour unions, healthcare networks, and human rights associations, aims to peacefully advocate for humanitarian access to Gaza via Egypt's Rafah border. The march comes as Gaza faces what UN officials describe as a 'catastrophic humanitarian crisis.' Israel has imposed severe restrictions on aid routes. Aid, including food, water, and medical supplies, continues to accumulate at the Egyptian side of the Rafah crossing, blocked by bureaucratic and political barriers. According to the World Health Organisation, the entire 2.1 million population of Gaza is facing prolonged food shortages, with nearly half a million people in a catastrophic situation of hunger, acute malnutrition, starvation, illness and death. 'Our goal is not to forcibly enter Gaza,' organisers insist. 'We aim to negotiate with Egyptian authorities to open a humanitarian corridor, with the support of diplomats, NGOs, and international law experts.' From Cairo, participants will travel by bus to Al Arish, where they will begin a 48-kilometre march to the Rafah crossing, arriving by June 15. A short stay and peaceful sit-in are planned near the terminal until June 19, depending on Egyptian permissions. Organisers emphasise that the Global March to Gaza is a non-partisan, non-religious, and entirely civic movement, driven solely by humanitarian principles. 'We are not here as politicians,' a spokesperson said. 'We represent ordinary people who believe in justice, human dignity, and peace. This is not about ideology—it's about lives.' In an official statement released on June 10, the Egyptian Ministry of Foreign Affairs acknowledged the planned mobilisation and reaffirmed Egypt's sovereign control over the Rafah border. 'While Egypt recognises the humanitarian concern expressed by participants in the so-called Global March to Gaza, we urge all parties to respect national laws and refrain from actions that may escalate tensions or compromise border security,' the statement read. 'Egypt continues to work with international partners to coordinate aid delivery to Gaza, but any mass civilian mobilisation near a sensitive border zone poses risks we cannot ignore.' Despite the warning, march organisers remain firm in their commitment to nonviolence and legality. A team of international lawyers is accompanying the march to ensure compliance with local laws and safeguard participants' rights. 'If we are blocked or turned back, the world will see,' said the march organisers. 'Our visibility is our strength. We are citizens, not militants, and any repression will only amplify the message: Gaza must not be forgotten.' Participants include teachers, nurses, artists, students, and activists from over 50 countries. Major supporters range from DiEM25, Africa4Palestine, Healthcare Workers for Palestine, to various trade unions and feminist organisations. Delegations from Canada, South Africa, France, Argentina, Japan, and Greece are already on the ground. When asked why they do not simply donate to NGOs, organisers explained: 'Many NGOs are currently blocked. Our march is not a replacement but a complementary action—a visible, peaceful pressure campaign to unblock humanitarian access.' Bringing the matter home, the PAGAD (People Against Gangsterism and Drugs) delegate said they were detained for 11 hours and were at risk of deportation as they were on the journey to the Global March to Gaza. They are believed to be part of the thousands of activists for the march. Among those detained was National Coordinator Haroon Orrie and six others. Political parties condemned the detention and hoped for their safe return. The International Relations Department's spokesperson, Chrispin Phiri, said he would verify the incident. The Cape Town Ulama Board released a statement on Thursday, saying it stands in support of the march to Gaza. "In light of the the thousands of activists from around the world marching to Gaza including South Africans, in aim to break the suffocating siege and draw attention to the genocide occurring, we call on the Egyptian authorities not to detain anyone standing for justice and to release the detained South African and all the other detained activists and participants aiming to join the global march to Gaza." IOL NEWS
Irish Examiner
2 days ago
- Politics
- Irish Examiner
Three Irish people detained in Cairo ahead of protest walk to Gaza border
At least three Irish people who have travelled to Egypt to take part in a protest walk to the Gaza border have been detained in Cairo. Around 3,000 activist from across the world are due begin a march across the Sinai dessert on Friday to the Rafah border — including dozens of Irish campaigners — demanding the opening of all crossings, the entry of aid, and an end to the bombardment. The Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) has confirmed that it has been contacted by "a small number of citizens and is providing consular assistance". As well as Irish citizens, campaigners from the US, Australia, the Netherlands, France, Spain, Morocco and Algeria have been detained after arriving in Egypt. 'Over 200 participants were detained at Cairo airport or questioned at hotels across Cairo,' the march's spokesperson Saif Abukeshek told the AFP. Mr Abukeshek said plain-clothes police entered hotels in Cairo with lists of names, questioned activists and in some cases, confiscated mobile phones and searched personal belongings. 'After interrogations, some were arrested and others were released,' he added. DFA has urged all citizens to heed advice which strongly warns against travel to the Governorate of North Sinai, including the Taba-Suez Road, where the security situation is "extremely dangerous". People Before Profit's Paul Murphy ahead of his trip where he plans attend the 'March to Gaza'. Picture: SAM BOAL/Collins Photos "Travel to Gaza via the Rafah border crossing, the vicinity of the Rafah border crossing is particularly dangerous at the moment and the border crossing is currently closed," DFA advice currently states. In total around 40 Irish people, including TD Paul Murphy, are hoping to take part in the protest march which is expected to take a number of days to arrive at the border. Since March this year, all of the crossings entering Gaza have been blocked by Israel — no food, water, or medical supplies have been allowed to enter, which the group wants to highlight through its peaceful protest. Read More Air India crash: Man reportedly survives as more than 290 people killed
Yahoo
06-06-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Windsor couple joins global march to Gaza border to protest war
A Windsor Ont., couple is preparing to make the journey to the Middle East to join a peaceful global protest to stand in solidarity with the Palestinian people. As part of the March to Gaza demonstration, they will join potentially thousands of people in Cairo, Egypt, before taking a bus to the coastal city of Arish and then marching three days to Rafah, the border point between Egypt and Gaza. "You're watching a genocide live streamed," said Mireille Coral. "What's happening to human beings is heartbreaking." Coral and her husband Paul Chislett have been activists throughout their lives, and the crisis unfolding in Gaza has taken a strong hold over their hearts. Chislett explained that communities have been calling on governments to take action against the violence, but he said, "they refuse to." "So, what are we supposed to do? Just sit back and become an audience?" he said. "When this effort came up, we thought we really needed to go to add our voices." They've already been taking part in local protests in support of Palestinians, but they're compelled now to do even more. The war in Gaza has raged since 2023 after Hamas militants killed around 1,200 people in Israel in an Oct. 7 attack and took some 250 hostages back to the enclave, according to Israeli tallies. Many of those killed or captured were civilians. Israel responded with a military campaign that has killed over 54,000 Palestinians, according to Gaza health authorities. They do not distinguish between fighters and non-combatants but say civilians have borne the brunt of the attacks and that thousands more bodies have been lost under rubble. A December report from Amnesty International described Israel's actions as genocide. Israel disputes the report and has denied accusations of genocide. Israel lifted an 11-week blockade last month, but since then, aid has only trickled in. Experts say Gaza's entire population of some 2.1 million people is at risk of famine despite successive efforts to boost aid. Calling for an end to the violence "I think it's important from a humanitarian point of view that we come to the aid of human beings," Coral said, adding that she's concerned about the enforcement of international law. "The world that we're creating is lawless and quite frightening." She added that she resists the idea that the people of the world have abandoned Palestinians, pointing out that people have been protesting and signing petitions, but said it is "disturbing" that governments aren't listening. Amir Haddad, a Burlington resident, and one of the organizers of the Palestinian Youth Movement Toronto says as a Palestinian, he's directly impacted by what's happening in Gaza. He also plans on travelling to Egypt to join the march. "Like many others, I've spent the last 20 months or so doing everything I can to challenge the complicity of the government's enabling the genocide that's happening right now," Haddad said. "We hope that a ceasefire is reached, a complete ceasefire that would include the end of the occupation of Gaza, the lifting of the siege and the blockade on Gaza, and allowing proper aid to come in." The March to Gaza website says that the action of the demonstration aims to unblock the Rafah passage and secure a permanent humanitarian corridor. Travelling to Egypt next week While Haddad, Chislett and Coral each have some concerns for their personal safety, they all believe it is worth it in order to take action they feel is necessary. "What we suffer here is nothing to what Gaza has been through. My personal conscience and many other people's personal conscience doesn't allow them to sit while genocide continues," Haddad said. Mireille acknowledged she's a little frightened, adding that she's never been much of a traveller to begin with. "But, I think we'll be in solidarity with other people. I think there'll be a comradeship that develops, that builds," she said. "At least we can say we did what we could." Chislett agreed. "It will come home to haunt us if we don't stand up. And if governments won't, we just have to," he said. They are all travelling to Egypt next week to meet in Cairo on June 12, with the goal of arriving at the Rafah border crossing for a peaceful demonstration on June 15.
