VZCZCXYZ0000
PP RUEHWEB

DE RUEHEG #1231/01 1671437
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P 151437Z JUN 08
FM AMEMBASSY CAIRO
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 9556
INFO RUEHDS/AMEMBASSY ADDIS ABABA 0333
RUEHAE/AMEMBASSY ASMARA 0152
RUEHKH/AMEMBASSY KHARTOUM 1190
RUEHGV/USMISSION GENEVA 0387

UNCLAS CAIRO 001231 
 
SENSITIVE 
 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPARTMENT FOR NEA/ELA, PRM/AFR 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PREF PREL EG ER
SUBJECT: EGYPT ALLEGEDLY DEPORTS POSSIBLE ERITREAN 
 
REFUGEES 
 
REF: A. SECSTATE 61253 
¶B. CAIRO 965 
¶C. CAIRO 479 
 
Sensitive but unclassified, not for Internet 
distribution. 
 
¶1. (SBU) Summary: While we cannot confirm Amnesty 
International allegations that Egypt has deported 
hundreds of Eritreans seeking refuge in Egypt, our UNHCR 
contacts say that convincing circumstantial evidence 
shows that Egypt deported at least some Eritreans to 
either Eritrea or Sudan between June 11 and 14.  On June 
15, the MFA refugees office told us - and UNHCR confirmed 
- that UNHCR would be granted access to Eritreans held in 
Egyptian detention "in the next few days."  We have 
encouraged GOE contacts in the Ministries of Foreign 
Affairs and Interior to allow UNHCR access to all 
Eritrean detainees before deciding whether or not to 
deport them.  End summary. 
 
Egypt Allegedly Deports Eritreans: A Sequence of Events 
--------------------------------------------- ---------- 
 
¶2. (SBU) On June 13, an Amnesty International (AI) 
representative told us that, on June 11, Egypt had 
deported 200 Eritreans held at a detention center in the 
southern Egyptian governorate of Aswan directly to 
Asmara, and that on June 12 a further 200 Eritreans were 
deported to Asmara from the same detention center.  AI's 
sources were: lawyers who had been representing the 
Eritreans in Egyptian courts; at least one Eritrean 
detainee; an employee at the Aswan airport allegedly 
aware of charter Egypt Air flights to Asmara; and 
unofficial discussions with Egyptian security officers. 
The AI representative also noted that many of the mobile 
phones of Eritreans who were allegedly deported were now 
out of service. 
 
¶3. (SBU) Also on June 13, we encouraged contacts in both 
the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) and Ministry of 
Interior (MOI) to give UNHCR access to all Eritreans in 
Egyptian custody before making any decisions as to their 
disposition per ref A instructions.  UNHCR Deputy 
Regional Representative for Protection Katharina Lumpp 
told us that she believed that preparations to deport at 
least one group of approximately 180 Eritreans being held 
in Aswan governorate were underway, but could not confirm 
that any deportations had actually occurred.  She 
confirmed that the GOE had ceased allowing UNHCR access 
to Eritrean migrants for refugee status determinations on 
February 27, 2008, and that UNHCR was continuing to 
request this access both in Cairo and through UNHCR 
headquarters in Geneva. 
 
¶4. (SBU) On June 14, an AI representative told us that 
100 Eritreans had been deported on June 13 and that plans 
were being made for more deportations.  Later on June 14, 
State Security Investigative Service's (SSIS) Chief of 
Operations denied that Egypt had deported any Eritreans 
on June 13, and said that the GOE was not planning to 
return any Eritreans to Eritrea but rather intended to 
return those who had transited Sudan on their way to 
Egypt back to Sudan.  However, neither he nor MFA Deputy 
Assistant Minister for Refugees Tarek El Maaty, with whom 
we also spoke on June 14, confirmed or denied that any 
deportations of Eritreans had yet occurred. 
 
¶5. (SBU) On June 15, El Maaty told us that the GOE had 
approved UNHCR's requested access to Eritreans being held 
in Egyptian detention, and that he expected access to 
occur "maybe as we speak."  UNHCR Spokesperson Abeer 
Etefa confirmed later that day that the GOE had granted 
UNHCR access, which was to happen in the next few days, 
"but we'll see what form that access takes."  Revising 
Lumpp's original estimate, she said that circumstantial 
reports were convincing that Egypt had deported "at least 
some Eritreans" - though the destination was uncertain - 
between June 11 and 14.  She noted that UNHCR was sending 
staff to Aswan to get a better sense of events on the 
ground. 
 
Why Are Eritreans a Concern? 
---------------------------- 
 
¶6. (SBU) Lumpp opined that the GOE had originally cut off 
UNHCR's access to Eritreans in early 2008 because, with 
UNHCR granting refugee status to Eritreans at a rate of 
about 90 percent, a surge in the number of Eritreans 
illegally entering Egypt caused fears that Egypt would be 
forced to accept an ever increasing number of refugees. 
Egypt already hosts a large number of Sudanese refugees 
and faces a continued flow of African migrants illegally 
transiting Egypt to reach Israel (ref B).  El Maaty 
confirmed this line of thinking, saying that Egypt does 
not have the capacity to absorb continuing flows of poor 
migrants, and stressed potentially security concerns by 
welcoming further flows.  However, El Maaty disputed 
UNHCR estimates that Egypt is holding about 1600 
Eritreans who illegally entered the country, claiming 
that the number is "at most 300 to 400."  No matter the 
numbers, Lumpp and El Maaty agreed that about half of 
Eritreans entered Egypt through Sudan, some after having 
obtained UNHCR refugee status there, with the other half 
coming directly to Egypt via the Red Sea. 
 
¶7. (SBU) El Maaty claimed that Egypt has always abided by 
UNHCR designations of refugee status and plans to 
continue to do so, but implied that Egypt is not required 
to do so as "other countries" do not always refer 
potential refugee cases to UNHCR.  He complained that 
Egypt is shouldering more than its fair share of the 
refugee burden.  He asked for the U.S. and European 
countries to take a more active role in resettling 
refugees, though he thanked us for the U.S.'s recent 
acceptance of a handful of Sudanese for resettlement. 
 
Comment 
------- 
 
¶8. (SBU) If reports of Eritrean deportations are true, 
the GOE may be trying to send a message to any further 
would-be Eritrean migrants that they are not welcome in 
Egypt.  We hope to have more information on how many 
Eritreans, if any, have actually been deported when UNHCR 
gains their promised access later this week.  In the 
meantime, we are continuing to encourage the GOE to abide 
by the 1951 UN Convention on Refugees and to provide 
UNHCR access to any who may be in jeopardy of 
refoulement. 
 
SCOBEY