Canadian demonstrators held, passports confiscated ahead of planned global march to Egypt-Gaza border

Sara Jabakhanji · CBC News

· Posted: Jun 13, 2025 10:44 AM EDT | Last Updated: 1 hr ago

More than 40 Canadians readying to enactment successful the planetary march to Gaza successful Egypt person been detained and their passports confiscated by authorities, organizers told CBC News.

A radical of 83 Canadians arrived successful Cairo connected Wednesday and Thursday, up of the scheduled march to Egypt's borderline with Gaza, an effort to gully attraction to the deepening humanitarian crises facing Palestinians nether Israel's blockade of the war-torn territory much than 20 months aft attacks began.

Tatiana Harker, a subordinate of Palestine Vivra Montreal and march co-ordinator, said Canadians were among the thousands of different demonstrators en way to Al-Arish, wherever they were expected to statesman a three-day march toward Egypt's Rafah crossing with Gaza to clasp a peaceful objection there.

"A batch of radical are being detained, near successful the [heat] without immoderate answers, for 2 to 3 hours," Harker told CBC News connected Friday from Montreal.

Harker said Egyptian authorities confiscated their passports astatine a checkpoint successful the Suez Canal metropolis of Ismailia on Friday without providing a reason.

"The [Canadians] person been contacting the Canadian embassy successful Cairo with nary reply whatsoever. Our authorities is wholly ignoring us."

Ottawa household doc Dr. Yipeng Ge, 1 of the demonstrators successful the Canadian group, said they were told they would not beryllium allowed to transverse the Ismailia checkpoint unless they are Egyptian.

"People are not getting their passports back. Some person been waiting for hours," Ge said successful a station connected X connected Friday, with a video of hundreds of protesters chanting "Free, Free Palestine," arsenic they are held astatine the checkpoint.

"Some radical person been told to get their passports back, they person to get connected a autobus to the airdrome to beryllium deported."

Global Affairs Canada said successful an earlier connection to CBC News that it advises Canadians to debar each question to the Governate of North Sinai successful Egypt and to Gaza.

"Canadians who take to question to the portion bash truthful astatine their ain risk," it said Thursday.

More activists detained aft earlier deportations

Demonstrators were set to autobus to Egypt's coastal metropolis of Al-Arish to instrumentality portion successful the 48-kilometre locomotion connected Friday, sleeping successful tents on the mode to the Rafah crossing. Canadian organizers told CBC that authorities did not let demonstrators to autobus there, and had to find different modes of proscription to scope Al-Arish.

After reaching the Rafah area, they program to campy determination for astir 3 much days earlier returning to Cairo, according to the coalition's website, though it noted that overmuch of their plans volition beryllium connected authorization from Egyptian officials.

Egyptian authorities detained much activists connected Friday who were among demonstrators joining the planned march from 80 antithetic countries, while information forces successful eastbound Libya blocked a convoy of activists en way to conscionable them.

The Global March connected Gaza was slated to beryllium among the largest demonstrations of its benignant successful caller years, coinciding with different efforts, including a vessel carrying activists and assistance that was intercepted by Israel's subject en way to Gaza earlier this week.

Organizers connected Friday said authorities confiscated passports of 40 radical readying to march astatine a checkpoint extracurricular Cairo, wherever they're being held successful the heat. Others are being detained astatine hotels. They urged officials from the activists' location countries to propulsion Egypt to merchandise their citizens.

Friday's detentions travel aft hundreds arriving successful Cairo were antecedently detained and deported to their location countries successful Europe and North Africa. Before authorities confiscated their passports, the activists said they planned to stitchery astatine a campsite connected the roadworthy to the Sinai to hole for Sunday's march. They said authorities had not yet granted them authorization to question done the Sinai, which Egypt considers a highly delicate area.

"We proceed to impulse the Egyptian authorities to licence this peaceful march, which aligns with Egypt's ain stated committedness to restoring stableness astatine its borderline and addressing the ongoing humanitarian situation successful Gaza," the activists said successful a statement.

Group to refrain from demonstrating for now

Hicham El-Ghaoui, 1 of the group's spokespeople, said they would refrain from demonstrating until receiving clarity connected whether Egypt volition authorize their protest. 

The planned demonstrations formed an uncomfortable spotlight connected Egypt, 1 of the Arab countries that has cracked down connected pro-Palestinian activists adjacent arsenic it publically condemns assistance restrictions and calls for an extremity to the war.

Alexis Deswaef, a Belgian quality rights lawyer, said helium woke up connected Friday to dozens of information vehicles packed with uniformed officers surrounding Talat Harb Square, wherever helium and different activists had recovered hotels. Members of his radical snuck retired of the lobby arsenic information entered, holding up a guidebook and asking an serviceman for assistance booking taxis to the Pyramids of Giza, wherever they've been since.

"I americium truthful amazed to spot the Egyptians doing the soiled enactment of Israel," helium said from the Pyramids. He hoped determination would beryllium excessively galore activists astatine the caller gathering constituent extracurricular Cairo for Egyptian authorities to apprehension en masse.

Meanwhile, an assistance convoy travelling overland from Algeria picked up caller participants on the way successful Tunisia and Libya, yet was stopped successful the metropolis of Sirte, astir 940 kilometres from the Libya-Egypt border.

The efforts — the activistic flotilla, the overland convoy and the planned march — come arsenic planetary outcry grows implicit conditions successful Gaza. 

Israel has continued to pummel the territory with airstrikes portion limiting the travel of trucks carrying food, h2o and medicine that tin enter, saying it is applying unit connected Hamas to disarm and merchandise Israeli hostages.