An Irish woman detained by Egyptian authorities during the global peaceful march to Gaza has described the experience as “quite sinister” in parts.
Helen Lawlor (42) and fellow protester Kellie McConnell (37) were among the Irish delegation detained during a global peaceful March to Gaza.
About 2,500 people from more than 50 countries took part in the march earlier this month to protest against western military support for Israel in the conflict and to show solidarity with Palestinians under bombardment.
About 50 Irish people had travelled to Cairo with the goal of marching to the Rafah crossing with Gaza.
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Ms Lawlor, a nurse from Mountmellick, Co Laois, said things turned “quite sinister” as night fell and the group were surrounded by several “paid locals” wielding weapons, while Egyptian police stood back and watched on.
After being stopped at a checkpoint en route to Ismailia by taxi, “police came over and took our passports so we were all detained there for the full day, for hours,” she said.
“Hundreds and hundreds of cars, taxis and buses” had also been stopped “in the middle of the desert” in what Ms Lawlor described as a “very surreal experience”.
Despite this, spirits “remained high” among herself and the other demonstrators, who started singing, until “the evening passed and it started to get dark”.
“The police came back in riot gear and they kind of circled the crowd and split it into two,” Ms Lawlor said.
“Every few minutes, they would take a step forward to get us more cramped.
“They did set water on us ... That’s the only thing the Egyptian police actually did to us was set on this water sprinkler. Then they said you have 15 minutes to get on the bus or you’ll be beaten on to the buses.
“They had ambulances lined up and gurneys. I think that was a little intimidation, like you’re going to need these if you don’t move.”
Shortly after, “paid local people” arrived carrying “whips. They had belts, ropes. One guy had a metal bar with spikes at the end of it”.
“Then they started off just throwing water at people and then they were getting full bottles of water that were closed and just throwing them full force into people’s faces,” she said.
Ms Lawlor said she emerged with a bruised arm, while other members of the group “were badly beaten” as they sat in peaceful protest.
“At the same time that we were sitting there, there were pictures coming in from Gaza of bloodied children’s feet who had been crushed in between buildings and were left hanging until they died. So that’s the reason we went, to try get help to these people,” she said.
“It’s nothing compared to what’s going on in Gaza.”
Ms McConnell, a dentist from Wicklow who was also detained, echoed the sentiment.
“The real issue is the illegal occupation and detention of Palestinians in Gaza and in the West Bank. What’s happening to them has gone on for generations. We just had a week of it,” she said.
She said her motivation to join the march came from frustration at the Government, whom she said “pay lip service” to the humanitarian crisis.
“We can see flights through Shannon and through Irish airspace carrying weapons. We can see Ireland being the second highest customer for Israel after the US and we could sanction Israel. We could welcome Palestinians.”
Her group did not get further than Cairo, where they “were pulled over when we were in the taxi”.
“Eventually we got pushed on to a prison bus with tiny, very high windows and chains on the back of the seats and they wouldn’t tell us where we were going,” she said.
Her passport was also taken by the Egyptian authorities, who detained the group “for around seven hours”.
“The only water that they offered us were bottles that were already open,” Ms McConnell said.
Reflecting on the experience, having heard from other participants in the march “it looked like the strategy [of the Egyptian authorities] was divide and conquer”.
“Divide our groups, let some people through to this checkpoint and that checkpoint,” she said.
Ms McConnell returned to Ireland on Thursday, where she resumed campaigning with North Wicklow Against Genocide.
“On Thursdays we go to Simon Harris’s office in Bray, we leaflet, we demonstrate and we draw attention to the fact that he could be doing so much but isn’t.”
