EGYPTIAN OFFICIALS: INTERDICTION OF SUDANESE DUE

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 CAIRO 002320 SIPDIS SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 07/11/2017 TAGS: PREF PHUM PREL EG IS SU SUBJECT: EGYPTIAN OFFICIALS: INTERDICTION OF SUDANESE DUE TO TENSE BORDER SITUATION REF: A. SECSTATE 103854 ¶B. CAIRO 2195 ¶C. 2006 CAIRO 170 Classified by Acting DCM William R. Stewart for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d). ¶1. (C) Summary: Emboffs pressed for a more humane GOE approach to migrants and asylum seekers attempting to enter Israel with MFA contacts on July 25, reinforcing points on July 29 per ref A demarche. Separately, emboff informed the UNHCR/Cairo office of our request for UNHCR/Geneva to take the lead on coordinating an international response. The GOE is attempting to balance between limiting possible internal unrest from a large refugee/migrant population, guaranteeing border security, and addressing the international community's border and humanitarian concerns. GOE officials say reports that Egyptian security forces have recently killed at least one and wounded several Sudanese attempting to illegally enter Israel should be taken in the context of a tense security situation on the border after the Hamas take-over of Gaza. End summary. -------------- -------------- GOE Formulating New Policy, Downplays Border Shootings -------------- -------------- ¶2. (C) On July 25, poloff pressed for a more humane GOE approach to migrants and asylum seekers, and discussed reports that Egyptian security killed one Sudanese and wounded several others attempting to illegally cross the Israeli border, with Ministry of Foreign Affairs Cabinet Advisors Ahmed El Fadly (U.S. Affairs) and Ahmed Abu Zeid (African Affairs). Poloff reinforced these points with El Fadly per ref A demarche on July 29. The GOE interagency apparatus was formulating a policy to deal with the issue comprehensively, they said, but legal questions were still outstanding. Israeli press reports of a "deal" for Israel to return Sudanese and other Africans that had entered illegally from Egypt was still not concluded (ref B). UNHCR/Cairo had not been in contact with the GOE on this issue, they said. On July 29, Post Refugee Coordinator informed UNHCR/Cairo of our request to UNHCR/Geneva to take the lead on an international response per ref A demarche. ¶3. (C) El Fadly said that the GOE understands the humanitarian concerns that the shooting incidents raise, but noted that the GOE must take a comprehensive approach to security along a border that is particularly tense after the June Hamas take-over of Gaza. Similarly, Mohamed Imad, State Security Investigative Service U.S. Embassy liaison officer, told RSO FSN Investigator July 26 that, as border security has been tightened, increased confrontations are the logical outcome. However, Imad refused to verify that anyone had been shot on the border. Ministry of Defense (MOD) International Organizations (LAWIO) Chief Major General Nagy Kamal had previously confirmed to poloff a July 4 shooting, but was vague on the details, saying only that "per the rules of engagement" it is permissible to fire directly at persons attempting to cross the border. -------------- Smuggling Operations - Tacit GOE Support? -------------- ¶4. (SBU) Sudanese refugees in Egypt often turn to Sinai Bedouins to smuggle them to a better life in nearby Israel. Although border confrontations get the most media attention, Osama Mohammed El Hassan, Secretary General of the Democratic Popular Front (a South Sudanese opposition movement), estimated on July 15 that between 60 and 100 Sudanese are successfully smuggled into Israeli every day. (Comment: This is likely a high estimate, but we have no way of knowing the true numbers. End comment.) Sudanese pay between $300 and $700 for smuggling services, according to Egyptian and Israeli press. UNHCR/Cairo has registered about 25,000 Sudanese refugees and asylum-seekers in Egypt, although the exact number is unknown. Egyptian pro-government daily Rose El Youssef on July 4 quoted estimates of 1.5 million "expatriates" and 50,000 refugees. ¶5. (SBU) At a July 11 Cairo conference on Sudan, Sudanese expatriates opined that the GOE has historically tacitly approved Sudanese migration from Egypt to Israel. Sudanese in Egypt are often poor and have difficulty finding work, causing domestic problems for Egypt. The issue came to a head in December 2005 when Egyptian police forcibly dispersed a make-shift encampment of Sudanese refugees in central Cairo, killing nearly 30 (ref C). Allowing Sudanese to cross the Sinai and enter Israel, they surmised, could serve as a pressure relief valve. Conference attendees said that, since CAIRO 00002320 002 OF 002 June, Egyptian security has increased its interdiction efforts. Indeed, according to the Egyptian daily Al Dustour, Egyptian security forces stopped 106 Sudanese attempting to illegally cross the Israeli border in June, as compared to only 74 for all of January through May 2007. -------------- Comment -------------- ¶6. (C) The Egyptians realize that GOE violence against Sudanese on the Israeli border, particularly when examined in concert with recent events in Gaza and Darfur, has the potential to raise the ire of the international community. However, the GOE is clearly treading carefully to formulate a policy on migrants that will limit internal strife from a large population of refugees and asylum seekers, guarantee border security at a particularly tense time, and address the international community's border and humanitarian concerns. Increasing interdictions of Sudanese without further violence would require a stepped up border presence, and could benefit from better working-level coordination with the Israelis. However, neither side has been willing to increase cooperation to combat human and narcotics trafficking in the past . RICCIARDONE