Human trafficking in the Sinai: the UN, EU and democratic governments must intervene

Rafah, January 8th, 2011. It has been over two months since the world found out about the ordeal of the 250 African refugees in the Sinai. After the refoulement from the European Union and harsh detention in Libyan prisons, the migrants decided to attempt to reach Israel.

In Egypt, the Africans relied on Bedouin smugglers, paying a sum of $ 2,000 per person for help in finding refuge in the Jewish state. But the group of refugees in the desert fell into a trap. Once in the Egyptian Sinai, the robbers demanded $ 8000 more per person to take them any further. The 250 migrants were then taken south of Rafah on the border between Egypt and the Palestinian territories, near the border with Israel. They were shackled and imprisoned in large metal shipping containers with only slits in the side to enable them to breathe. They were given a loaf of bread a day to eat and sometimes a few sardines. In Rafah episodes of violence began: torture and rape against women, sadistic acts that served to satisfy the brutality of the kidnappers and sap the will of the prisoners.

The Africans were forced to ask their relatives abroad to pay their ransom money. The traffickers allowed the Africans to keep their mobile phones and even recharged them when necessary. In this way, the prisoners' relatives continued to receive requests for payment to ensure their release. Thanks to these mobile phones, some refugees were able to contact the outside world. Thanks to the efforts of the Eritrean priest don Mussie Zerai, EveryOne Group and various other NGOs, the news of the victims' plight has spread throughout the world. Their cry was picked up by the Pope, the United Nations, the European Parliament, and the governments of democratic countries.

They all stigmatized the phenomenon of human trafficking and appealed to Egypt to take urgent action. “The traffickers are armed with modern Kalashnikovs, while the police are forced to operate with light weapons,” EveryOne Group writes in a letter. “It 's a problem that dates back to the Camp David Accords, which were signed by Egypt and Israel in 1978. The agreements were signed by the Egyptian President, Anwar Sadat, and the Israeli Prime Minister, Menachem Begin. With regard to the Sinai, the agreements established that it become a demilitarized zone (DMZ), close to the border. Later, in order to combat the emergence of smuggling, human trafficking and armed gangs, Egypt asked Israel if the authorities could improve the weapons and vehicles of their border police. Israel, however, has not yet granted that exemption to the Camp David Accords. So in order to combat immigration, the Egyptian police began firing on refugees. Through contacts with NGOs in Egypt and Israel, with Bedouin tribes and local authorities, Everyone Group has been able to establish how the trafficking works. Two gangs of traffickers belonging to the Rashaida and Sawarka tribes are running the illegal smuggling. The Sawarka family is very wealthy and has a lot of influence. When interviewed by the media, its members claim they are proud of their work.

“The police cannot carry out operations inside Bedouin property”, continues EveryOne's letter, “unless they are invited to by the hosts. If Egypt and Israel fail to sign a new agreement on the Sinai, trafficking in migrants, slaves, children and human organs will continue in the future. But we need urgent and concrete actions, because words, even when they come from major institutions, cannot solve such a huge and tragic problem”.

In the photo, Israeli prime minister Menachem Begin and Egyptian president Anwar Sadat with U.S. president Jimmy Carter at Camp David in 1978.

Will Egypt ever catch the people traffickers?

Global human trafficking awareness day: CSW calls for effective action for Eritrean hostages in Sinai

Complaint against the traffickers of the Sinai
Human trafficking in the Sinai: the UN, EU and democratic governments must intervene

Refugees in the Sinai: Egyptian police kill an Eritrean on the Israeli border

Refugee Hostage Crisis in Northern Sinai Getting Worse
Africans in the Sinai: update and new developments

Egypt: Policeman killed by human traffickers
The African migrants in Sinai and the Evian Conference

Report: Hamas torturing 250 Eritreans in Egypt
Egypt: rights organizations urge govt to rescue African hostages

Hostages, Torture, and Rape in the Sinai Desert
Egypt: Eritreans taken hostage, no progress

EveryOne asks Egypt to send a Task Force to liberate the Eritrean Refugees

Urgent action needed: an appeal for the liberation of 250 African migrants being...

Egypt Plays Down Reported Eritrean Refugee Hostage Crisis In Sinai
A brief report by EveryOne Group on the illegal detention in Rafah of over 250 migrant...
European Parliament Resolution on Eritrean Refugees held hostage in Sinai
The long road of death, massacre in Sinai
Refugees crossing Sinai subject to torture, rights group says
A statement that is an accomplice in the humanitarian tragedy
Eritrean migrants in the Sinai: two more killings
Egypt: End Traffickers’ Abuse of Migrants