Egypt to release detained Sudanese refugees News
Egypt to release detained Sudanese refugees

[JURIST] Egyptian officials have said that 143 Sudanese refugees, detained by Cairo police after a three-month sit-in protest was forcibly broke up, will be released. As many 600 other Sudanese refugees, some of whom hail from the war torn region of Darfur [JURIST news archive], face deportation by Egyptian Foreign Ministry [official website, in Arabic] for their alleged role in the demonstration, an incident that resulted in the death of at least 28 people. The release of the detained refugees by Egypt follows pressure from the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) [official website], which urged Cairo [JURIST report] to release and not deport the prisoners. The UNHCR has also received assurances [UNHCR news release] from Cairo that the government will refrain from deporting any Sudanese accused of involvement in the demonstration until each case can be fully investigated on an individual basis. AFP has more.