27 October 2014
Five Palestinian refugees from Syria are at imminent risk of being forcibly returned to either Gaza or Syria by the Egyptian authorities. Their travel documents have been confiscated and they have been confined to a terminal in Cairo airport. A group of five Palestinian refugees from Syria, Mohamed Fareed Yousef, 29, Khalid Jamal Salman, 25, siblings Riham Hassan Mahmoud, 19, and Mohamed Aldurra Mahmoud, 14, as well as their cousin Ahmad Abbas, 26, have been confined to a terminal hall in Cairo International Airport, some of them since 16 October 2014. According to one of the refugees, they have been sleeping on the floor and eating only one meal per day, as they have limited
Five Palestinian refugees from Syria are at imminent risk of being forcibly returned to either Gaza or Syria by the Egyptian authorities. Their travel documents have been confiscated and they have been confined to a terminal in Cairo airport. A group of five Palestinian refugees from Syria, Mohamed Fareed Yousef, 29, Khalid Jamal Salman, 25, siblings Riham Hassan Mahmoud, 19, and Mohamed Aldurra Mahmoud, 14, as well as their cousin Ahmad Abbas, 26, have been confined to a terminal hall in Cairo International Airport, some of them since 16 October 2014. According to one of the refugees, they have been sleeping on the floor and eating only one meal per day, as they have limited
financial resources.
Riham Hassan Mahmoud, Mohamed Aldurra Mahmoud and Ahmad Abbas left Gaza via Rafah, Egypt’s eastern border with the Gaza Strip, on 15 October. Mohamed Fareed Youssef left on 18 October, while Khalid Jamal Salman left on 23 October. As they crossed, Egyptian security forces transferred them by bus to Cairo International Airport, along with a group of Palestinians who were travelling to other countries via Cairo. As the group of Palestinians left for their final destinations, the five were confined to the terminal hall as they did not have valid visas or travel plans. Security officials at the airport confiscated their travel documents and told them they would have 48 hours before being returned to either Gaza or Syria. A representative from the Palestinian embassy in Cairo has also visited the group in the terminal, telling them that they will not be remaining in Egypt much longer.
