Displaced People: Any person, or people, who migrates from one place to another for relatively long periods of time and is in need of basic standards of protection. Among displaced persons, you may find: political refugees, asylum seekers, uprooted people, undocumented individuals, climate refugees, diasporic people, forced migrants, and more.
In a joint statement issued by human rights organizations, including the Refugee Platform in Egypt, Tunisia was described as an unsafe place for people rescued at sea: ‘In light of the rampant human rights violations against displaced people, migrants, asylum seekers and refugees in Tunisia, especially those who are darker skinned, as well as the absence of a formalized asylum system in Tunisia and the Tunisian government’s crackdown on civil society and the independence of the judiciary system and media broadcasting, as well as the impossibility of fairly and individually identifying nationalities or assessing the protection needed by migrants and asylum seekers while at sea, Tunisia is clearly not a safe place to shelter displaced persons intercepted or rescued at sea. The continued cooperation between the European Union’s nation states and Tunisia on migration control, which includes relying on the possibility of assisting people rescued or intercepted at sea in Tunisian territorial waters, similar to that of the European Union’s previous cooperation with Libya, contributes to human rights violations.”
The signatories urged the European Union and its nation states to:
- Beckon Tunisian authorities to end the continued human rights violations perpetrated against displaced people, refugees, asylum seekers, and migrants, including an immediate end to any more unlawful and life-threatening mass expulsions
- Demand that Tunisian authorities end their repression of their own civil society
- Ensure that search and rescue organizations as well as commercial vessels are not directed to shelter people they rescue at sea in Tunisia, given the risks associated with human rights violations in Tunisia and Tunisia’s inability to make fair individualized assessments of these risks at sea. As Tunisia cannot be considered a safe place for displaced people rescued at sea under applicable international law any longer.
- End financial and technical support to Tunisian authorities responsible for serious human rights violations in relation to border and migration control.
Egypt
Sudanese expelled from Egypt under the pretext of ‘public interest’, UNHCR reopens files that were stalled for years
Sudanese Expelled from Egypt under the Pretext of ‘Public Interest’:
Another recent development, in issue 216 of the Official Gazette, the Interior Ministry’s newly affirmed decisions were published including two decisions to deport two Sudanese citizens out of Egypt for reasons of ‘public interest’.
The first article of Decision No. 1708 of 2024 stipulates that Mohamed Abbas Faisal Mohamed (Sudanese nationality – born 28-2-2006) will be deported out of the country for reasons of ‘public interest’. As for Decree No. 1709 of 2024, its first article stipulates that Issam Muhammad Osman Abdulwad (Sudanese nationality – born 20-6-1979) will also be expelled from the country for reasons of ‘public interest’.
UNHCR Reopens Files that were Stalled for Years:
As for the UNHCR in Egypt, Syria TV reported that the High Commissioner for Refugees in Egypt has reopened certain asylum files that have been stalled for years, as a means of resolution for a large number of Syrian citizens who are unable to obtain permanent residency in Egypt.
Many Syrians see this move as a ‘breakthrough’ in light of the difficulties in renewing permanent residency and the hardships involved in obtaining an appointment with the UNHCR, as tens of thousands of displaced Syrians were forced to convert their residencies to asylum.
Syrian people in Egypt are facing several crises, most notably high residency fees, which have reached 150 American dollars per person, a threefold increase from the 50 American dollar price as of two months ago, prompting many Syrians to consider other solutions including obtaining asylum.
Due to the ardousness involved in the renewing of permanent residency, the UNHCR has recorded an influx of applicants seeking to obtain an asylum card (blue or yellow card).
The Egyptian government issued new instructions this year to stop renewing permanent residencies and convert them exclusively into asylum or investment designations. Many of those who found it difficult to renew their permanent residencies under these new conditions rushed to the UNHCR to legalize their asylum status.
The deadlines for obtaining asylum have been extended until the end of 2026, creating another crisis for Syrians, especially those who have children to enroll in schools, which do not accept them without a valid residency or designation.
Despite the pushed deadlines, seeking out UNHCR intervention is still a legal solution for Syrians, prompting many of them to request that their files, which have been closed for years, be reopened.
Palestine
UNRWA official press statement: More than 10,000 people in Gaza Strip still in need of medical evacuation, Israeli occupation’s army kills 24 palestinians in their bombing of mosque and school housing displaced palestinians, Euro-Mediterranean Human Rights Monitor: ‘IOF intensifies bombardment and issues evacuation orders for northern Gaza echoing stages of genocide’
UNRWA Official Press Statement: More than 10,000 People in Gaza Strip still in need of Medical Evacuation:
“More than 10,000 people in the Gaza Strip are still in need of medical evacuation after the Israeli assault killed more than 41,000 people” stated Louise Wateridge, spokesperson for the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA), at a press briefing in Geneva on Tuesday.
Israeli Occupation’s Army Kills 24 Palestinians in their Bombing of Mosque and School Housing Displaced Palestinians:
In a press release issued by the government media office of the Gaza Strip, the release stated that the Israeli occupation’s army committed two brutal massacres in the central governorate by bombing Al-Aqsa Martyrs Mosque adjacent to Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital and Ibn Rushd School. The mosque and the school were sheltering hundreds of displaced Palestinians, and killed 24 people so far as well as injured 93 people.
These two brutal massacres were carried out after a series of massacres were committed by the occupation army where they bombed 27 homes, schools, and shelters in different governorates of the Gaza Strip during the past 48 hours. The continuously atrocious bombardment led to the death of dozens of martyrs who were already wounded.
It should be noted that the government media office of the Gaza Strip also issued a report entitled “Statistics of a Year of Annihilation”, which details the statistics of the occupation army’s crimes over the course of a full year since the start of the Zionist occupation’s annihilation campaign against the Gaza Strip began.
Euro-Mediterranean Human Rights Monitor: ‘IOF Intensifies Bombardment and Issues Evacuation Orders for Northern Gaza Echoing Stages of Genocide’:
“The Israeli occupation’s army is repeating the genocidal stages that they began implementing in the Gaza Strip a year ago” the Euro-Mediterranean Human Rights Monitor states. The release continues by explaining that “as the Israeli occupation’s army intensifies their violent shelling on specific areas of Gaza and the northern Gaza Strip, that offensive front coincides with the start of their ground incursion. All while they issue a new forced evacuation map for the remaining Palestinian residents of the northern Gaza Strip thereby announcing the start of a new phase of their ethnic cleansing project.”
The Euro-Mediterranean Human Rights Monitor goes on to explain that their field team documented, as of 3:00 PM/15:00 Saturday, October 5th until dawn October 6th, the Israeli occupation’s army launched more than 70 air raids and firebombs in addition to heavy artillery shelling on the Jabalia region, Jabalia camp, Beit Lahia, and northwestern Gaza City.
The monitor states that the shelling targeted many homes, gatherings, a water distribution vehicle, and a shelter full of displaced Palestinians which killed and injured dozens of them.
The monitor highlighted that the Israeli occupation’s army began an incursion late Saturday evening in the northwestern outskirts of Gaza City and east of Jabalia amid fierce fire belts. This incursion was executed well before the Israeli occupation’s army announced on October 6th in the morning that they had intensified the siege on Jabalia, which they had already previously attacked several times at that point by carrying out several dozen massacres as well as destroying most of Jabalia’s infrastructure and residential homes.
On Sunday, October 6th morning, the Israeli occupation’s army issued several new evacuation maps, one of which detailed the start of a new phase of their annihilation campaign in which they renamed the residential blocks in the Gaza and North Gaza governorates. They also ordered the remaining Palestininan residents in those renamed areas to evacuate through Al-Rashid street and Salah al-Din street towards what they described as ‘humanitarian zones’ in the west of the southern Gaza Strip, which they also claimed was slightly expanded according to one of the maps.
Sudan
More than 400 children suffer from acute and moderate malnutrition in Darfur
More than 400 Children Suffer from Acute and Moderate Malnutrition in Darfur:
The General Coordination of Displaced Persons and Refugees in Darfur (an NGO) announced on Saturday that more than 400 children are suffering from acute and moderate malnutrition in North Darfur located in Western Sudan.
The NGO’s coordinator released a statement which reads: ‘More than 400 children suffer from acute and moderate malnutrition, and more than 306 children suffer from diseases such as measles, watery diarrhea, malaria and eye infections.’ The statement continues by explaining that these diseases were detected ‘in the neighborhoods of Jiflu and Salomat, north of the Zamzam IDP camp (North Darfur state). Where children in ZamZam camp and other camps in Darfur area are suffering from diseases, hunger, and acute malnutrition.’ The statement then called on ‘all humanitarian workers in the world to respond quickly to humanitarian appeals to save the lives of millions of Sudanese children.’
On Tuesday, the United Nations announced that 3.4 million children under the age of five are at risk of contracting epidemic diseases. “Sudan is now among the top four countries in the world with the highest prevalence of global acute malnutrition at 13.6 percent,” the United Nations Office for Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) states in a press release.
Lebanon
More than 1.2 million lebanese people are displaced due to ongoing assault, UN condemns Lebanon’s ‘appalling’ crisis caused by Israeli airstrikes, offensive fronts targeting Palestinian camps in Lebanon, domestic workers in Lebanon find no shelter, and more than 170 Syrians martyred in Lebanon
More than 1.2 Million Lebanese People are Displaced Due to Ongoing Assault:
The Lebanese government announced on Thursday, October 3, that the number of internally displaced people (IDPs) has reached at least 1.2 million. The wave of displacement began about a year ago, as the wave’s commencement coincided with the annihilation campaign in Gaza, and mainly affected cities in southern Lebanon. But since September 23, the Israeli occupation army’s strikes on Lebanon have intensified and as a result the flow of displacement has taken a different turn.
There are also tens of thousands of displaced people who have decided to leave Lebanon for Syria. According to the latest figures reported by the UNHCR, more than 160,000 displaced people have crossed the Lebanese Syrian border through official crossings and approximately 60% of these IDPs are Syrian citizens. On the other side of the border, the western Syrian provinces of Tartus and Latakia are receiving many families, while the provinces of Homs, Damascus, and Rif Dimashq have announced that they are preparing to receive thousands of internally displaced people.
United Nations Condemns Lebanon’s ‘Appalling’ Crisis Caused by Israeli Airstrikes:
Upon his arrival in Beirut on Saturday, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, Filippo Grandi, condemned the ‘horrific crisis’ Lebanon is facing due to the Israeli occupation’s army perpetuating heavy airstrikes towards several areas of the country causing hundreds of thousands of Lebanese people to forcibly flee their homes as a result.
Grandi posted a tweet on the ‘X’ platform that reads: ‘I have just arrived in Beirut as Lebanon faces a terrible crisis. Hundreds of thousands of people are destitute or homeless because of Israeli airstrikes’ Grandi posted in another tweet on the ‘X’ platform: ‘I came here in solidarity with those affected, to support humanitarian efforts, and to ask for more international assistance as authorities estimate that more than one million people have been displaced by the Israeli escalation.’
The United Nations Deputy Special Coordinator for Lebanon and Humanitarian Coordinator, Omran Reda, warned of an ‘alarming increase’ in attacks conducted by the Israeli occupation army on healthcare system infrastructure and medical teams in Lebanon. Reda stated via a tweet on his professional account through the ‘X’ platform ‘Over the past few days, we have seen an alarming increase in attacks against healthcare teams in Lebanon. Healthcare workers are paying the highest price with their lives.’ Reda continued by warning that Lebanon’s ‘ healthcare system is on the verge of collapse.’
His remarks come after at least four hospitals in Lebanon announced the suspension of their services, while a Hezbollah-affiliated health organization announced that 11 of its medics were killed in the south of the country. With the repeated targeting of any medics in several areas, acting Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati announced that diplomatic connections were established to ‘put pressure on the Israeli enemy to allow national rescue and relief teams to reach the sites that were hit and allow the transportation of victims and the wounded’ while also denouncing ‘the Israeli enemy’s violation of international laws and humanitarian norms.’
Offensive Fronts Targeting Palestinian Camps in Lebanon:
In a report by The New Arab, the newspaper stated that the Israeli enemy has repeatedly called on Lebanese residents of the south to evacuate their homes and head north of the Awli River in the city of Sidon (south Lebanon) for their safety. These calls included a threat not to stay in their homes. Prior to the occupation issuing forcible displacement orders as well as coercive threats, the Israeli enemy sent threatening letters to 32 Lebanese villages including the Bass and Rashidiya camps in the city of Tyre (south Lebanon) and the Maashouq and Qasimiyeh Palestinian refugee communities in Tyre. There are three camps in Tyre: al-Rashidiyeh, al-Bus, Burj al-Shamali (which had already received threatening orders before), and three communities: al-Shabriha (which had already received threatening orders before), al-Maashouq, and al-Qasimiyeh.
These messages created a wide state of panic and confusion among the residents of Palestinian camps and gatherings. The majority of residents were forced to leave for the city of Saida, the Iqlim al-Kharroub area, and northern Lebanon.
In other developments, the head of the People’s Committee in Adloun al-Bisariyeh, Mohammad Baqai, stated: “As the first moment of Israeli aggression, the enemy warned residents in Burj al-Shamali camp to abandon their homes, which caused a state of panic and confusion amongst the residents. There can be no blame towards the residents for ultimately doing so, as they witnessed what was done by the Israeli enemy in the Gaza Strip and the crimes committed by the Israeli enemy. These offensive fronts were always based on a lack of hesitation towards targeting civilians under any pretext aimed at exterminating Palestinians.”
The Israeli enemy’s warnings prompted these internally displaced people to forcibly flee to the city of Saida, and from there some of these people headed to Beirut which is the capital of Lebanon, the North of Lebanon, and elsewhere. Nevertheless, a number of internally displaced people returned to the Tyre camps after one or two days because of the suffering they dealt with as a result of the forced displacement. Despite their warranted fears and the occupation specifically targeting populated camps, many of these people were martyred upon returning. Resultantly, two young men from Burj al-Shamali camp were martyred upon returning. Moreover, an airstrike also targeted al-Bus camp and killed an entire family who were in their home.
Domestic Workers in Lebanon Find No Shelter:
In another development, UN officials stated on Friday that most of Lebanon’s nearly 900 shelters are full, while expressing concerns over the ‘abandonment’ of tens of thousands of domestic workers by their employers.
Approximately 100 migrant workers and their children live in the same crowdfunded shelter, where they sleep on cots on a cement floor and eat on wooden pallets. Dia Haj Shaheen, who helped spearhead the project, said she and her team members are working around the clock to expand the shelter by adding generators and a makeshift kitchen. Their ultimate goal is to help displaced workers wanting to return home to their native country, even though most, like Kamara, do not have passports. Dia stated: “we have currently started the process (of arranging an evacuation) for those who have told us they want to travel. For those who want to stay, we currently have a shelter that is open to them and provides for whatever needs they have. But we don’t know what’s next.”
More than 170 Syrians Martyred in Lebanon:
In other developments, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights announced the death of five Syrian refugees in Lebanon: A woman, a child, and three men, as a result of Israeli occupation shelling targeting different areas.
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights documented 171 Syrian displaced people in Lebanon, including 33 women and 46 children, as a result of the violent Israeli escalation that has continued on Lebanese territory since September 21.
Tunisia
15 migrants dead off Djerba Island
15 Migrants Dead off Djerba Island:
The number of victims of the unlawful migration boat that sank off the Tunisian island of Djerba has risen to 15, according to judicial sources. These sources also noted that the three of the 15 victims include an entire family consisting of a father, a mother, and their child. The boat sank at dawn on Monday September 30th after setting sail from the coast of Djerba island in southeastern Tunisia. 15 displaced people, including children, were killed, while 31 displaced people were rescued as the search and rescue operations are ongoing.
Fathi Bakoush, spokesperson for the public prosecution in Medenine province, confirmed to The New Arab that the semi-final death toll of the Djerba boat has reached 15 people. “The investigations revealed that the number of displaced people on board the boat was around 47 people, including three Moroccan citizens, two of whom survived while the deceased body of the third was recovered” Bakoush said.
“The number of survivors of the Djerba boat sinking reached 3, including children and women” Bakoush added that “one person is still unaccounted for and missing, according to the data available to the public prosecution.” Bakoush also confirmed that the number of displaced people on board the boat was around 47, including three migrants of Moroccan nationality. Bakoush also stated that “four people have been arrested and are suspected of being involved in organizing this unlawful migration, while three others were already on the wanted list for investigation, and are still on the run from authorities.”
Canary Islands
Search for missing migrants after 9 deaths off of the canary islands
Search for Missing Migrants After 9 Deaths off of the Canary Islands:
Marine rescue teams on Sunday renewed their search for 48 missing displaced people since their boat capsized near El Hierro, one of Spain’s Canary Islands. This tragedy would be the largest number of deaths in 30 years amongst displaced people crossing by sea from Africa to these islands. Emergency and rescue services reported that nine displaced people, including a child, have been confirmed dead after an unlawful migration boat sank in the early hours on Saturday morning, September 28th. Rescue personnel were able to recover 27 of the 84 displaced people who were trying to reach the Spanish coast.
Djibouti
45 migrants dead and 111 missing after two boats sink
45 Migrants Dead and 111 Missing After Two Boats Sink:
The International Organization for Migration (IOM) announced on Wednesday that 45 migrants have died and 111 others are missing after being forced by smugglers to abandon their boats at sea off the coast of Djibouti. At least 45 people tragically died and 111 are still missing after being forced by smugglers to leave their boats at sea, the UN organization confirmed in a statement. ‘The incident occurred off the coast of Obock, near Guduria, and involved two boats carrying displaced people coming from Yemen’ IOM confirmed. The statement continues: ‘The Djibouti Coast Guard is conducting search and rescue operations to locate the missing displaced people.’
The IOM statement continues ‘According to survivors, the first boat was carrying 100 displaced people, while the second boat had 210 displaced people on board, all on their way to Djibouti from Yemen. The Yemeni boat operators forced the displaced people into the open sea to swim. A woman drowned, but her 4-month-old baby survived along with 98 other people from the first boat.
According to the IOM ‘This is the second most grievous accident on the eastern route, second only to the drowning of 196 displaced people in June 2024, both of which demonstrate a worrying trend in the current year. Since 2014, the IOM’s Missing Migrants Project has recorded more than 1,300 migrant deaths due to drowning on the eastern route, including 337 deaths between January and August 2024.’
Afghanistan
European Court of Justice: Gender and nationality alone are sufficient reasons to grant asylum to Afghan women
European Court of Justice: Gender and Nationality Alone are Sufficient Reasons to Grant Asylum to Afghan Women:
According to the European Court of Justice (ECJ), the treatment of women by the Taliban, which controls Afghanistan, should be classified as persecution, which could justify recognizing them as refugees. When examining the asylum application of an Afghan woman individually, it is sufficient for a European state to take into account her gender and nationality only, the European Court of Justice (ECJ) ruled on Friday, October 4, 2024.
The European Court’s decision came in response to questions posed by Austria. The relevant administrative court in Austria has to decide on lawsuits filed by two Afghan women, who challenged the Austrian authorities’ refusal to recognize them as refugees. The women argued that their situation in Afghanistan alone warranted them being granted refugee status.
The Austrian Administrative Court sought out the council of the European Court of Justice regarding how the matter should be approached, as well as explored whether a European nation state could grant asylum to an Afghan woman solely based on her gender.
France
Low migrant attendance at Doctors of the World center raises concerns of post-Olympic isolation
Low Migrant Attendance at Doctors of the World Center Raises Concerns of Post-Olympic Isolation:
At 2 PM/14:00 on Tuesday, October 1st, the Doctors of the World center for migrants in need of health care in the northern Paris suburb of Saint Denis opened its doors. On that same day however, contrary to tradition, there were only a few people present for the center’s opening.
“There was a 50 percent decrease in attendees at this center.” explains Mathieu Drian, the General Coordinator of Doctors of the World, or Médecins du Monde’s, located in the suburbs of Paris. Nevertheless, this decrease in attendance doesn’t necessarily mean fewer displaced people are seeking medical care. During the Olympics in France last summer, the 20-year-old center was forced to suspend its activities in mid-July in Saint-Denis to temporarily relocate its headquarters to the suburb of Pantin. As of September 15th however, the center has been operating again at its original location. Sitting behind her small wooden desk, center volunteer Agnès says, “Before the Olympics, during our normal working days, I wouldn’t have had time to talk to you.” In a more concerned tone, she asked “Where are the other half of the people? Where did the migrants go?” Employees at this NGO are concerned that a large number of displaced people, who had become increasingly isolated due to the large-scale sporting event that is the Olympics and reside in remote locations due to being afraid of being stopped by the French police, could be in danger, Especially since this center receives all patients unconditionally, providing care to new refugees and asylum seekers who do not have documented residency and thus do not have access to health insurance.
Mexico
Death of 6 migrants, including Egyptians
Death of Six Migrants, Including Egyptians:
Forty-eight hours after Claudia Sheinbaum became Mexico’s first female president, she held a press conference to announce an investigation into an incident that led to the death of six displaced people, including an Egyptian citizen, after Mexican army soldiers opened fire on a bus carrying them.
Sheinbaum confirmed at the press conference held in Mexico City on Thursday, October 3rd that the six victims were from Egypt, El Salvador, and Peru, without disclosing the number of victims of each nationality, referring to the incident as ‘unfortunate’ and ensuring that the culprits would be held accountable.
The Mexican army had revealed, on Wednesday, October 2nd, that the circumstances of the incident, which occurred late Tuesday October 1st in the southern state of Chiapas, involved two soldiers shooting at a truck carrying 33 displaced people after hearing gunfire around their location. Reuters however published that the truck, and two cars accompanying the truck, tried to flee from an army checkpoint.
In addition to the six victims, 10 other displaced people were injured, but the Mexican army’s statement did not detail their health condition, noting that the truck also included other nationalities besides the nationalities of the victims namely Nepalese, Indian, Pakistani, and Cuban.
Scheinbaum’s remarks came a few hours after the Egyptian Foreign Ministry announced that the Egyptian ambassador to Mexico, Amr Abdel Wareth, participated in the inauguration of the new president without mentioning the incident. This is not the first incident that involved Egyptian citizens being endangered in Mexico.