BENGHAZI/CAIRO – Since 17 February, the armed conflict in Libya has left hundreds – if not thousands – of Egyptians stranded in the country. In addition, many Egyptians who were working there have lost their livelihoods, homes, family members, and/or personal identification documents as a result of the conflict. Estimates regarding the number of displaced, homeless, missing and dead Egyptians are unknown.
Abdel Tawwab Goma'a, an Egyptian itinerant trader from Fayoum Governorate, is currently residing at the Tamazight Hotel in Benghazi. According to Goma'a, he was locked up along with tens of other Egyptians and foreign nationals for over six months in prisons and dungeons around Tripoli and Misrata, in Western Libya.
"The Qadhafi Brigades stole LE50,000 worth of fabrics, electrical appliances and merchandise that I was going to sell in Egypt. They occupied my home, confiscated my passport and personal identification card,” he told Al-Masry Al-Youm.
"We've repeatedly resorted to the Egyptian Embassy in Tripoli and the consulate in Benghazi. We’ve only received empty promises of assistance in the near future, but nothing in terms of monetary assistance, temporary housing, or replacement of documents."
Tears swelled in his eyes as he recounted horrific stories of torture, physical and psychological abuse, along with deprivation of food and water.
"One day they took a young Libyan rebel fighter outside the cell,” he said. “They shot him dead. Then they dragged his corpse back into our cell where they left it to rot for over two days. Another time they deprived us of water for three days, so we had to resort to drinking our urine."
Goma'a claims that Libyan rebel forces liberated them from prison late last month, after the Qadhafi Brigades fled the fighting in Western Libya. "It is the Libyan National Transitional Council (NTC) which is assisting us, not our own state," he said. Dozens of other displaced Egyptians are being accommodated at the budget hotel where Goma’a is staying near Benghazi's Vegetable Market. The NTC is reportedly also paying for the accommodations of other displaced Egyptians in other hotels and shelters across the country.
Goma'a asked: "Who else should we turn to? Who can help us get back home to our families? Should we try resorting to the Egyptian Embassy and consulate again, or should we just rely on the NTC?" Other Egyptians spoke of missing brothers, co-workers, neighbors and friends.
Back in Cairo, the official spokesman for the Egyptian Foreign Ministry, Ambassador Amr Rushdy, commented that the situation is very complicated and in many cases murky.
Prior to the 17 February revolution, "there were around one million Egyptians working or residing in Libya, but at times there may be up to three million seasonally – employed or itinerary laborers and traders working across Libya."
Rushdy explained that the vast majority of these Egyptians have not registered themselves, the identification papers, addresses or whereabouts in Libya at the Egyptian Embassy in Tripoli or the consulate in Benghazi.
"We are working around the clock to assist and repatriate stranded Egyptians. Even at the height of the most intense fighting we didn’t close our embassy or consulate, nor did we pull out our staff," he said. Complications arose, according to Rushdy, due to the fact that communication networks were knocked-out during the fighting.
Mamdouh Hamed, a resident of Alexandria who worked as an engineer in Misrata said: "we are stuck here in Libya. Until we get some documentation from the Egyptian authorities, we’ll remain stranded here, unable to return home, unable to leave Libya.
"My apartment was shelled and completely destroyed during the fighting. I've lost my passport and identification documents. How can I prove that I'm Egyptian without such documents?
He said NTC had paid for his accommodation at the hotel for the past month.
“We’re very grateful for their assistance, and for this temporary housing. But we want to go home, or at least be able to work in this country,” he said.
“Without proper documentation, we can do nothing."
Ambassador Rushdy confirmed that the absence of documents represents enormous obstacles for resolving the crisis. "We've called upon Egyptians who've lost their passports and documents to send for replacements, expired papers, or even photocopies of these documents, from their families in Egypt,” he said. “Yet many have failed to do so, or are unable to do so. Without these documents how can we prove that these people who are they claim to be? We can't even prove that they are Egyptian nationals without these documents."
Rushdy argues that diplomatic staff from the Egyptian Embassy and consulate, in coordination with the UN High Commissioner for Refugees has – from March to August – assisted in evacuating over 200,000 Egyptians from Libya's conflict zones into eastern Tunisia. "We've then airlifted these Egyptians from Tunisia's Djerba Airport to Cairo," he says. For those Egyptians with valid documents, he continues, "we've also provided each of these nationals with LE600 of transportation money in order to get to their homes across the country."
Rushdy claims that at least 265 Egyptians were imprisoned in Libya during the conflict. "On 28 August, we assisted in the evacuation and relocation of 39 released Egyptian prisoners. They were evacuated from Tripoli and taken to Djerba, or relocated to Benghazi,” he says.
Egypt's Foreign Ministry is unable to provide details or estimates regarding the number of fatalities and disappearances among Egyptians.
"This would involve guess-work; it's like shooting in the dark," says Rushdy, who added that the foreign ministry is also currently involved in negotiations with the NTC for the release of Egyptian fisherman and fishing-vessels detained in Libya for encroaching on Libya's territorial waters.
