An organized group of anti-Israeli Western liberal activists launched its long-planned “Global March to Gaza” on Friday. The participants arrived in Arish, Egypt, to begin a 48-kilometer trek to the border city of Rafah, where they would gather with “people from around the world” in a show of solidarity for their Palestinian brethren.
According to the event’s website, the activists planned to unite in a global call for justice and demand the following actions from world leaders: the opening of borders to humanitarian aid, a permanent ceasefire, and, of course, the end of the illegal occupation.
Well, as the saying goes, the devil fools with the best-laid plans. To put it mildly, the activists were not welcomed by the Egyptians.
There’s been little to no mainstream media coverage of this event, because why would there be? But according to social media posts, several group members were reportedly arrested, many of them had their passports confiscated, and some claimed they were handled roughly — even violently — by the Egyptian police. Others reported that local civilians hurled objects at them, adding insult to an already humbling experience.
In the video below, obtained by a conservative influencer, Egyptians can be seen clashing with the activists.
The next recording was posted by a member of the group. He and his fellow travelers had been held up at a checkpoint between Cairo and Ismailia. Despite the delay, the activists appeared upbeat. Several were waving Palestinian flags as the crowd chanted “free, free Palestine.” That must have gone over big with the Egyptians, who are not fans of the Palestinians.
He reported:
Everyone’s passport has been taken. We have been told that no one is allowed to cross this checkpoint unless if they are Egyptian. People are not getting their passports back. Some have been waiting for hours. Some people have been told to get their passports back, they have to get on a bus to the airport to be deported. There are hundreds and estimated 1000 people at this checkpoint alone. People are rallying and chanting at this checkpoint – “Free Free Palestine.”
The situation devolved as the day went on. There were reports that marchers were being deported by the Egyptian authorities and mistreated by the police.
To be clear, a Canadian physician just texted me that Egyptian authorities are deporting marchers increasingly violently, and taking passports.“It’s getting violent from the police. They are beating people and shoving them onto buses to be deported.”
Below, a young woman cries as she describes how badly the activists have been treated.
According to one account, even the Egyptian children joined in the action.
A lesson learned.
And I’ve saved the best for last!
In the final video, a pro-Palestinian man from Wales literally gets down on his knees and begs an Egyptian policeman to let them pass: “[Inaudible] for love, stand with your brothers and sisters in Palestine. I have never seen or experienced anything like it. Please, I beg you. Allow us to march to Palestine. You’ve GOT to listen to me.”
If only he were making this plea to the administration of Columbia University.
It’s unclear, but unlikely, if any of the activists made it beyond the checkpoint. Their idealistic adventure had been shut down by the Egyptian authorities, leaving them disillusioned — and unceremoniously deported.
But what did they expect? Armed with slogans, Palestinian flags, and a naïve faith in the universality of their “woke” worldview, they marched into a region with little patience for Western moral posturing. Their experience exposed a fundamental disconnect: the assumption that their brand of activism, rooted in Western academic ideology, would be welcomed in a vastly different cultural and political landscape.
Instead, they learned the hard way that virtue signaling doesn’t translate well outside their own echo chambers.
Elizabeth writes commentary for Legal Insurrection and The Washington Examiner. She is an academy fellow at The Heritage Foundation. Please follow Elizabeth on LinkedIn or X.
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