Egyptian authorities detained more than 200 pro-Hamas protesters in Cairo on Thursday, as the activists planned to break the blockade on Gaza, according to organizers.
Part of the “Global March on Gaza,” thousands of activists left from Tunisia and planned to make their way by land to the Egyptian side of the Rafah crossing, and demand the entry of humanitarian aid.
The march’s spokesperson, Saif Abukeshek, told the French news agency AFP: “Over 200 participants were detained at Cairo International Airport or questioned at hotels across Cairo.”
He added that those detained included nationals from the United States, Australia, the Netherlands, France, Spain, Morocco and Algeria.
Abukeshek alleged that plain-clothed police entered hotels where the convoy participants were staying and, after some interrogation, in some cases confiscated cell phones and searched personal items.
Some protesters were held up for several hours at Cairo airport, while others were quickly deported.
The organizers were unable to provide an accurate count of the number of people involved.
A separate train of protestors, known as the Sumud (meaning steadfastness in Arabic) Convoy, left the Tunisian capital on Monday and is coordinating with the Global March on Gaza, also intending to reach the Strip.
Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz called on the Egyptian government to halt the international protest marches before they got anywhere near the Rafah crossing.
“I expect the Egyptian authorities to prevent the arrival of the jihadist protesters at the Egypt-Israel border and not to allow them to carry out provocations or attempt to enter Gaza, which would endanger the safety of IDF soldiers and will not be allowed,” Katz’s office stated.
He warned that if Egypt failed to prevent the protesters’ encroachment toward the border area, then the IDF would take the necessary preventative measures to avert their entry into Gaza.