Sisi government is blocking and deporting more marchers despite legal representations, as Israel smears humanitarian protest
The Global March to Gaza movement issued an urgent message earlier today to supporters, confirming that its march to the Rafah crossing with Gaza is continuing today despite the Egyptian government’s decision to detain, and threaten with deportation, around 170 people of the expected 10,000 or more arriving in Cairo to gather before heading to Rafah.
The march, which aims to raise global awareness of Israel’s illegal starvation blockade of Gaza and to release the tens of thousands of tonnes of food, medicines and other essentials that Israel is holding at the crossing, will depart from Cairo by convoy, travelling some 350km before the march will cover the remaining 50km over the next three days before gathering at the crossing for several days from Sunday.
But Israel, and no doubt the US behind the scenes, have been pressuring the Sisi government to block the march and it seems that the government is capitulating as it has begun to escalate the scale of its barring and deporting of peaceful humanitarian activists. The Egyptian leadership has now issued official statements affirming its intention to stop the march towards the Rafah border to break Israel’s blockade, after far-right Israeli defence minister Israel Katz labelled the peaceful protesters as ‘jihadists’.
Sisi’s regime has now blocked more than 200 activists from Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, Europe and other regions from joining the march despite valid visas:
Activists arriving from Sweden and Denmark have been deported.
Several thousand – some reports say as many as 10,000 – people are now close to the Egyptian border after travelling from Algeria and Tunisia, across Libya (with huge support from the Libyan people) for the march, which gathers today in Cairo before heading to Rafah. It is not yet clear whether or how Sisi intends to stop them.
The ‘Sumud Convoy’ – Sumud is the Palestinian word for ‘steadfast perseverance’ – continues its journey to the border en masse:
Israel continues to starve and bomb the surviving Palestinian people of Gaza, more than half of them children – more than 300,000 close to death from malnutrition – with the inaction or active collaboration of many western and client governments, including the Starmer government in the UK.
The Global March organisers say that the march is still going ahead, that embassy and consular officials are helping people who have been detained at Cairo airport and that the release of several has already been secured.
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Israel has leverage over Egypt because of its reliance on Israel for its LNG
Not sure about that Steve H. Sure Egypt does import LNG from Israel , but Sisi is setting up a long-term LNG infrastructure deals, including a couple of 10-year floating storage and regasification unit (FSRU) agreements with the likes of Saudi Amoco, Höegh Evi and another with New Fortress Energy to lease FSRUs. Moreover Russia has recently signed to supply Bahrain with LNG.
No, it’s unlikely to be about Israel’s supply of LNG.
qwerty – Really, have you read this? 🤔
“Egypt’s energy gamble has left it beholden to Israel
Cairo faces a combustible mix of geopolitical blackmail, economic fragility, and surging regional tensions”
https://responsiblestatecraft.org/egypt-israel/
It might be up to the Egyptian people to save the day & give a warning shot to its autocrat who seems to jump to the US tune.
Perhaps, Al Sisi knows only too well that he is in power as Egypt’s President because the US encouraged and supported a coup de Etat by the military when Morsi, the candidate of the Muslim brotherhood became elected Egypt’s Prime Minister during the democratic elections held on 2012.
Hence, although I take the point about Egypt needing to be on the good side of Israel because of its energy needs. I believe a more powerful reason is that while the US is supporting Israel, Al Sisi will not risk to go against US’s interest.
Hence, Al Sisi fears more than anything to be abandoned by the US and feed to the Muslim Brotherhood.
Still, Al Sisi should not forget the fate of Sadat. Eventually, the US is going to be debilitated and the only thing pandering to the US and Israel is going to achieve is for the Egyptian masses to increase their support for Muslim Brotherhood
“Al Sisi will not risk to go against US’s interest.”
Yes, he’s their man and like all of ‘their’ men they do as they’re told! The fuel issue is just a convenient cover for him not to look submissive and compliant. He’s like the current Pakistani government: Obedient, obsequious and 100% servile to US instruction.
FWIW, Sisi’s regime is a brutal dictatorship. He is very unpopular with and relies on military and security services for control. His handling of the Gaza genocide, particularly his refusal to allow Palestinian refugees into Egypt, has been criticised by other ME leaders and even his own elite (who broadly supported the Muslim Brotherhood government his coup displaced) If Sisi were to block or suppress the humanitarian and peace-orientated Global March, his own survival will be less likely. But, like Starmer, he’s only a figurehead…
https://www.middleeasteye.net/opinion/egypt-sisi-repression-stagnation-continue-2025
https://www.palestinechronicle.com/egypt-detains-deports-dozens-of-activists-ahead-of-global-march-to-gaza/