The overland “Sumud” convoy set off on 9 June 2025 from the Tunisian capital, as part of a Maghreb popular initiative aimed at breaking the siege imposed on the Gaza Strip for around two years. The convoy consists of around 20 buses and 350 cars, carrying between 1,500 and 2,000 activists from the countries of the Arab Maghreb, foremost among them Tunisia and Algeria, in addition to participants from Morocco and Mauritania who joined it later.
A number of Libyan activists also took part in the convoy during its stages inside Libya, as well as dozens of doctors who accompanied it equipped with medical equipment and an ambulance, in anticipation of the possibility of their being allowed to enter the Gaza Strip.
Since setting off, the convoy has received a broad popular welcome at its various stops. After a mass send-off in Tunisia, it crossed into Libya on 10 June via the Ras Ajdir crossing, and was met with a massive reception in the cities of Zawiya and Tripoli, where residents gathered waving Palestinian flags in support of the march.
By 12 June, the convoy had reached the outskirts of the city of Misrata in western Libya, and was due to continue its journey eastwards through Sirte and Benghazi, to the Salloum border crossing with Egypt. According to the organisers, the volunteers are expected to arrive in the city of Arish and at the Rafah crossing on Sunday 15 June 2025, where they intend to hold a peaceful sit-in to demand the opening of the border and permission for aid to enter Gaza.
At the same time, another international convoy, including activists of dozens of European nationalities, is on the move, and they are scheduled to arrive in Egypt via Cairo International Airport, in a sign of the widening scope of international popular action in support of the Palestinians, amid the continuation of the Israeli war on the Gaza Strip, which has entered its second year without a political horizon for stopping it.
In the same context, a number of Egyptians in solidarity called for a solidarity stand to be held this evening, 12 June, on the steps of the Journalists Syndicate in Cairo, under the slogan: “Sumud convoys: open the road to Rafah”.
On social media, the convoy drew wide engagement, as thousands of activists circulated photos and videos documenting the passage of the “Sumud convoy” through Libyan cities, which the participants had posted on their personal accounts.
The Maghreb “Sumud” convoy and the global convoy accompanying it represent a direct extension of popular moves that have escalated in recent months in an effort to break the siege imposed on the Gaza Strip. Among the most prominent of these moves was the maritime “Break the Siege” convoy, which set off on 1 June 2025 aboard the ship “Madleen” from the port of Catania on the Italian island of Sicily, in a symbolic humanitarian attempt to challenge the naval blockade imposed on the Strip.
On the morning of 9 June, forces of the Israeli occupation intercepted the ship in international waters, around 185 kilometres from the shores of Gaza, using small aircraft, before taking it to the port of Ashdod. Following this, 12 activists who were on board were arrested.
On 10 June, the occupation authorities deported four of the activists after they signed a pledge not to return to the occupied Palestinian territories, while the other eight activists refused to sign the pledge, which led to their continued detention.
Egyptian security measures and coordination with Cairo
The route taken by the “Sumud” convoy towards Egyptian territory raised early questions about how Cairo would deal with it, especially given the sensitive security situation in North Sinai. In this context, the Egyptian Ministry of Foreign Affairs issued an official statement on 11 June in which it welcomed the international and popular positions supporting the Palestinian cause, but stressed that any foreign delegations or convoys must obtain prior official approvals before moving within Egyptian territory, particularly in the border areas.
The statement stressed that the Egyptian authorities would not consider any moves carried out outside the accredited diplomatic channels and official coordination arrangements, based on considerations relating to sovereignty and national security.
In parallel, Egyptian security sources reported that the convoy had not, to date, obtained the necessary permits to pass through the Salloum crossing on the Libyan border, nor had the required coordination with the competent authorities in Cairo been completed, which makes its entry into Egyptian territory an unresolved matter in light of the tightened security measures in that area.
A security source stated that the relevant agencies are on alert near the Libyan border to prevent any attempts to infiltrate without legal documents, stressing that Egypt “does not refuse the entry of the convoy” in principle, but demands prior coordination including the full data of the participants who will cross a distance of nearly 1,000 kilometres inside Egyptian territory to reach the Rafah crossing.
The same source explained that the Egyptian agencies would not clash with the participants and would allow the entry of those holding regular entry visas, and he did not rule out Egyptian activists or parties joining the convoy when it reaches Rafah. But at the same time he stressed the need to keep any gathering near the crossing under full security control, to avoid chaos that could be exploited by Israel.
The same sources reported that the past few days had seen internal discussions in Cairo about the mechanism for dealing with the convoy, as the initial security opinion leaned towards refusal, before the option was put forward of allowing it to enter with controls reducing the numbers, on condition that participants hold legal visas. Official circles attributed this hesitation to the critical nature of the position: rejecting the convoy entirely could reinforce accusations of Egypt’s participation in the siege of Gaza, while allowing thousands of activists to cross Egyptian territory without precise organisation could involve security risks that are difficult to contain.
The convoy affirms official contact while the Egyptian authorities ignore it
Amid the escalating controversy over preventing the “Sumud” convoy from entering Egyptian territory, the Egyptian Ministry of Foreign Affairs issued an official statement entitled “Regulatory controls for visiting the border area adjacent to the Gaza Strip”, in which it stressed the need to adhere to official channels for submitting requests, emphasising that the Arab Republic of Egypt welcomes all international and regional positions, whether official or popular, that support Palestinian rights and reject the siege and the Israeli violations against the residents of the Gaza Strip.
The statement explained that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Emigration and Egyptian Expatriates is continuing its diplomatic efforts to address the humanitarian catastrophe suffered by more than two million Palestinians and to end the aggression on the Strip. It also indicated that the submission of requests to visit the border area (the city of Arish and the Rafah crossing) is limited to Egyptian embassies abroad, foreign embassies in Cairo, or representatives of organisations wishing to coordinate with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs directly, affirming that Egypt had already coordinated visits by a number of foreign delegations, governmental and human rights, in accordance with these controls.
The statement stressed the need to respect the approved regulatory procedures, put in place to ensure the security of visitors given the sensitivity of the security situation in the border area, and to abide by the laws relating to entry into Egyptian territory, including obtaining visas and prior permits.
For its part, the convoy’s committee issued a statement affirming that weeks earlier it had contacted the Egyptian authorities through official channels, via the Egyptian embassy in Tunisia and through relevant intermediaries in Cairo. The convoy also sent an official letter to the Egyptian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, explaining the objectives of the initiative and its peaceful and humanitarian nature.
Wael Nawar, one of the convoy’s spokespeople, stated that the official request was submitted to the Egyptian embassy in Tunis on 19 May 2025, that is, around a month before the date of departure, as part of the legal route followed to obtain approval for passage to the Rafah crossing. He added that the request was made in the name of the “Sumud convoy”, and was submitted days before an official meeting between a delegation from the convoy and the Egyptian ambassador in Tunisia, headed by the activist Ghassen Henchiri and held at the embassy headquarters in the presence of a Tunisian figure with ties to the Egyptian state, whose identity Nawar preferred not to disclose “out of concern for his safety”, while affirming that the convoy’s coordinators are prepared to summon him to give his testimony if needed, in response to any doubts. Nawar affirmed that all the steps taken were out of respect for official procedures, considering that any attempt to play down the convoy’s commitment to the law does not cover up the violations to which the participants were later subjected.
Arrests and deportation of participants
As the “Sumud” convoy advanced through Libyan territory, the Egyptian authorities escalated their security measures against hundreds of foreign solidarity activists arriving by air to take part in the marches heading towards the Rafah crossing as part of the “Global Convoy to Gaza”. From 9 to 11 June, hundreds of activists from around 80 countries arrived at Cairo airport, with the aim of joining the solidarity events planned at the border.
But the Egyptian authorities dealt with these delegations firmly from the moment of their arrival. According to the convoy’s organisers and security sources at the airport, dozens of them were forcibly deported immediately. Reuters quoted three sources at Cairo airport as saying that the authorities deported 73 activists on a flight to Istanbul on 12 June, on the claim that they had violated entry rules. Around 100 other people were also detained at the airport pending their deportation in the following days, bringing the number of those detained to more than 200 activists, according to a statement issued by the convoy, including American, Australian, French, Spanish, Dutch, Moroccan and Algerian nationals, among others.
The organisers affirmed in a statement issued on the night of 11 June that they had coordinated in advance, over a period of two months, with the Egyptian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and with Egyptian embassies in more than 15 countries, and that the participants had met all the required conditions. Despite this, they were surprised by the campaign of arrests and deportations, and demanded the immediate release of all those detained.
In a later development, Zawia3 monitored the continuation of deportations over the following hours. According to private sources, the authorities deported eight participants holding dual nationality (European and Maghrebi) without providing them with any reasons or official documents, despite their holding valid entry visas.
140 Algerian participants were also deported immediately upon arrival, among them three lawyers known for their human rights activism, as well as more than ten Moroccan participants who were sent back on the flights on which they had arrived, in addition to Turkish citizens. On the other hand, a number of French citizens were released after being detained for a short period, while a Tunisian women’s delegation was held inside the airport, and it later emerged that the authorities were in the process of deporting them as well and preventing them from continuing their journey to the Rafah crossing.
For its part, the “Law and Democracy Support Foundation” said, in an official statement issued today, 12 June, that the Egyptian authorities had committed “grave violations” against the participants in the peaceful international convoy. It stated that members of the Dutch delegation were detained inside the airport, had their passports confiscated, and were subjected to degrading treatment including deprivation of water, food and medical care, before being forcibly deported despite holding legal entry visas.
The statement of the Dutch delegation added that the participants had not received any legal justification for the detention or deportation, despite their compliance with Egyptian laws and their refraining from any unlicensed activities. The foundation called on the Egyptian authorities to stop all forms of harassment, detention and deportation of the participants, and to allow humanitarian aid to pass without obstruction, affirming that Egypt’s continued blocking of these convoys “effectively contributes to reinforcing the illegal siege that Israel imposes on more than two million Palestinians in Gaza”.
In the same context, human rights lawyer Yasser Saad comments on the government statement issued regarding the controls for visiting the border area, considering that its legal text contradicts the actual practices on the ground. Saad says, speaking to Zawia3, that the steering committee of the Sumud convoy adhered to submitting requests through the approved official channels, in accordance with the Egyptian Constitution and the international agreements that guarantee freedom of movement.
He explains that there is nothing in the law that justifies preventing a foreigner from entering Egyptian territory except by a prior, announced official decision, based on objective legal grounds, of which the person concerned is notified before his arrival or at the crossing. He adds that the detention of a number of participants and their deportation from the airport or from their places of residence, despite some of them holding legal visas, constitutes a flagrant violation of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, which Egypt has signed.
Saad concludes by affirming that the refusal to allow the participants to enter without announced decisions or clear legal justifications constitutes an infringement of the right to freedom of movement, especially as the convoy’s objectives are purely humanitarian in nature and do not pose a direct threat to national security, contrary to what was stated in some media statements close to the circles of power.
The security bodies responsible for the campaign
The Egyptian security agencies, foremost among them the police forces and the National Security Agency of the Ministry of Interior, took charge of carrying out the campaign of arrests against the participants in the Sumud convoy. Officers in plain clothes (believed to be from National Security) carried out raids on hotels and the interrogation of the activists staying there, while airport security personnel and passport police officers detained arrivals at Cairo airport and transferred them to temporary detention centres inside it. The raids and searches of hotels showed high-level security coordination, including the preparation in advance of lists of the names of the targeted activists. On the other hand, the Ministry of Interior and the Egyptian security agencies did not issue detailed official statements about this campaign while it was taking place. When news agencies sought comment, security officials declined to make statements; even the Cairo security director did not respond to a request from Agence France-Presse for comment on those arrests. A human rights lawyer tells Zawia3 in a statement: “The absence of official clarification indicates the sensitivity of the issue, and perhaps the authorities’ reliance on unwritten instructions from above for dealing with these solidarity convoys. It is likely that the Egyptian National Security Agency (which is concerned with domestic political and security issues) led this operation in cooperation with the airport police, in the context of what the authorities considered a preventive measure to stop foreign activists from reaching inflamed border areas (North Sinai and Rafah) without prior security coordination”.
Doctors and volunteers arriving from Scandinavian countries also had their share of the strict measures; sources reported that the authorities immediately deported a large number of doctors and activists arriving from Sweden and Denmark on their flights upon their arrival at Cairo airport, and did not allow them to enter the country. By contrast, the convoy’s organisers stated that some Tunisian activists who had travelled to Egypt by air days earlier were allowed to enter after lengthy security questioning at the airport, without arrest. Their personal data were taken and they were placed under surveillance, and they are now in Cairo waiting to join the rest of their colleagues if the overland convoy is allowed to enter.
A source among the organisers tells Zawia3 in a statement that “this disparity in treatment points to the Egyptian authorities having distinguished between those arriving individually on tourist visas, for some of whom procedures were slowed down and limited entry was allowed, and those arriving in organised groups, whom they perhaps considered “unwanted delegations” and who were therefore deported immediately”.
It is worth noting that Cairo justified its strict security stance on the grounds that the Rafah crossing on the Palestinian side is currently closed because of the situation on the ground, and that any foreign gathering there would therefore be futile unless Israel agreed to open it. Egyptian officials stated that the solution lies in putting international pressure on Israel to open the Gaza side of Rafah for the entry of aid, rather than trying to reach it through Egyptian territory without coordination.
Reactions
Taking part in the Sumud convoy, which set off from Tunisia, are prominent civil and trade union bodies, including: the Tunisian General Labour Union (UGTT), the Tunisian Order of Physicians, the Tunisian Scouts, and the National Union of Tunisian Journalists. In Algeria, the Algerian Initiative for Supporting Palestine and Relieving Gaza announced that it was joining the convoy; it is an initiative that emerged from the Association of Algerian Muslim Ulema, one of the country’s oldest religious and civil bodies.
Over the past weeks, the participants in the convoy underwent organisational and logistical procedures, including filling in registration forms, submitting passports valid for no less than six months (in line with the requirements of the Egyptian authorities), along with a medical certificate confirming that the participants are free of diseases, and a travel insurance certificate covering a period of no less than a month, starting from 9 June 2025.
On the other hand, however, Egyptian social media platforms addressed the subject of the “Sumud convoy” with divergent reactions, reflecting division over the initiative. While the convoy received a broad popular welcome, with a large number of Egyptians, especially activists and human rights defenders, expressing a desire to take part in it and support its objectives in advocacy of the Palestinian cause, other voices emerged expressing clear scepticism about the initiative’s intentions, warning that it could pose a danger to Egyptian national security and was seeking, according to those accounts, to push Egypt into becoming embroiled in a political and military conflict at an extremely sensitive time. Amid the delay in the official Egyptian position, media and parliamentary figures close to the circles of power appeared to express their opinions and comment on the convoy’s objectives and what they described as its “undeclared intentions”.
In this context, TV presenter Ahmed Moussa described the convoy as “including large numbers of activists who do not hold official entry visas”, considering that their possible entry into Egyptian territory could pose a security threat. In a post on the “X” platform, he referred to what he called the “trap” intended to be set for Egypt, saying: “Vigilance is required from everyone to confront this trap, which aims to embarrass Egypt, whether the convoy is allowed to enter or is prevented, as each option may be followed by campaigns prepared in advance against the Egyptian state”.
For his part, MP Mohamed Abdel Aziz said on Facebook that any event that leads to security chaos in Egyptian Rafah will result in facilitating the displacement project sought by the occupation, which Egypt rejected and stood against with all its official and popular strength… even if its organisers announced, in good faith or in bad faith, that the aim is to break the siege!
Meanwhile, TV presenter Mostafa Bakry rejected any outbidding on Egypt’s position towards the Palestinian cause, pointing out that “Egypt is against the siege imposed on our people with the aim of bringing them to their knees”, and noting, via his official page on the X platform, that Egypt rejected the displacement plan and rejected hundreds of billions of dollars. He pointed out that the plan aims to “embarrass Egypt and put it before one of two choices: either to confront any attempt at displacement with all resolve and force, to protect national security and in rejection of the liquidation of the cause, and at that point some will claim that Egypt is killing Palestinians, so that the conspiring forces move, launch systematic campaigns against Egypt and demand that it be punished”, or to allow entry, and “here it will be said that Egypt has been paid the price and took part in liquidating the Palestinian cause”.
A solidarity stand in the heart of Cairo and a welcome from the Civil Democratic Movement
A number of Egyptians in solidarity called for a protest stand to be held this evening on the steps of the Journalists Syndicate in Cairo, in support of the peaceful international convoys heading towards the Rafah crossing, in affirmation of peoples’ right to humanitarian solidarity and freedom of movement, and in rejection of the restrictions imposed on the participants.
Dr Karima El-Hefnawy, one of the women who called for and are taking part in the stand, says, speaking to Zawia3, that this event comes as an extension of previous popular moves against the genocide and the siege imposed on Gaza. She points out that the participants had previously organised a solidarity stand before Eid al-Adha to demand an end to the war and the entry of aid, and at the time announced the organisation of a new stand on the Thursday after the Eid, in affirmation of the continuation of popular action.
El-Hefnawy adds: “We were surprised that the movement of the international convoys coincided with our plans, and we contacted a number of the participants, who confirmed that they had submitted official requests to the embassies and the Egyptian authorities some time ago. Some of them obtained visas from European countries and arrived in Cairo by air, while the overland convoy wrote to the Egyptian embassy in Tunisia, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Red Crescent, without receiving official replies. Then the reply came late and carried a character of refusal, which closed the door to the convoy’s passage”.
She stresses that the national forces in Egypt still support all civil and humanitarian initiatives, adding: “We salute the peoples of the world who come with humanitarian motives to support the besieged people of Gaza. We are facing genocide and systematic starvation, and it is our duty to raise our voices against this injustice and to support everyone who tries to break it”.
While the Civil Democratic Movement did not announce the organisation of a parallel move, it welcomed the efforts of citizens and free people around the world seeking to break the siege, considering that these moves represent a global humanitarian conscience.
Walid El-Ammary, the movement’s spokesperson, says, speaking to Zawia3, that receiving the international delegations and allowing them to reach the Rafah crossing poses a security challenge for Egypt, but he affirms that the Egyptian state has sufficient expertise to organise these moves in a disciplined manner, adding: “Breaking the siege on Gaza is a priority humanitarian issue, and it deserves efforts from peoples and states. And Egypt is capable of dealing with it responsibly and efficiently”.
El-Ammary expresses his concern about the Israeli reaction towards the convoys, but he believes that the international moves represent an opportunity to confirm that it is not Egypt that is closing the crossing or preventing the entry of aid, as Tel Aviv claims. He explains: “During a year and a half of war, Egypt has let aid through every time circumstances allowed. Allowing the convoys to arrive will refute the Israeli claims, and show Egypt as a true supporter of Palestinian rights and a responsible humanitarian actor, despite the challenges”.
In the same vein, the Socialist Popular Alliance Party, in a statement published on its official website and pages, called on the Egyptian government to allow the convoy to enter, warning against “some calls, which are no secret, to prevent it on flimsy pretexts”, and stressing that preventing it would be “a grave mistake and a great folly that would damage Egypt’s reputation before the Arabs and the world”.
Earlier, Israeli officials said before the International Court of Justice that Egypt bears full responsibility for the Rafah crossing and that it controls the entry of aid without the need for Israeli approval. This was denied by the head of the State Information Service, Diaa Rashwan, who affirmed in press statements that Egypt had not been obstructive in letting aid through the crossing.
By contrast, twenty members of the European Parliament sent an official letter dated 3 June this year to President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi, in which they demanded that the participants in the convoy be allowed to cross into the Gaza Strip via Egyptian territory.
Editorial correction: The first version of the report stated that the ship “Madleen” set sail in May 2025 from a port in one of the Scandinavian countries, and that the occupation authorities deported four of the activists 72 hours after their arrest; the correct information is that the ship sailed on 1 June 2025 from the port of Catania on the Italian island of Sicily, and that the deportation took place on 10 June, that is, the day after the ship was intercepted, according to the coverage of Al Jazeera and news agencies.
Editorial correction: The first version of the report stated that the Prime Minister’s Office issued the statement “Regulatory controls for visiting the border area adjacent to the Gaza Strip”; the correct information is that the statement was issued by the Egyptian Ministry of Foreign Affairs on 11 June 2025.
Editorial correction: The first version of the report stated that the Egyptian authorities deported 73 activists on a flight to Istanbul on 9 June; the correct date is 12 June, according to what Reuters reported from sources at Cairo airport.
