Four Irish Siblings Held In Egypt

Concerns are growing after it was reported that four siblings are being held by Egyptian authorities after being caught up in a stand-off at a mosque in Cairo.

According to RTÉ, the four Irish citizens are understood to be from one family.

The three females and a teenage boy are the children of Hussein Halawa, the Imam at Ireland's largest mosque in Dublin. They are Omaima Halawa, 20, 22-year-old Fatima and 27-year-old Somaia, and their 17-year-old brother, Ibrihim.

It is understood they were in the al-Fath mosque on Friday when it was barricaded by supporters of the ousted President Mohammed Morsi. It was cleared by Egyptian security forces on Saturday.

However, Minister of State at the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, Joe Costello, said the four are now being detained in Cairo's main prison.

Speaking to RTÉ's This Week programme, the minister said the Irish Embassy in Egypt was doing everything it could to ensure their safety.

It is not known if the four siblings are together, or if they have been given food or water. Another family member admitted all they had been told was that they were in one of Cairo's jails.

At the family home in Firhouse, south Dublin, another sister, Nasaybi Halawa, spoke to the broadcaster and said her family sought refuge in a mosque as they thought it would be safe.

She said: "They phoned my father and told him they were in the mosque and that they were going to pray and afterwards would leave. But, by the time prayer time had finished they were surrounded.

"The security forces surrounded them in the mosque for 12 hours and didn't give them any food or supplies and that was while the world was watching on television. Now, when they have them and no-one can see them, what are they going to do?"

The four siblings had gone to their parents' native Egypt with their mother for a holiday at the start of the summer.

In a statement released yesterday (18 August), Sinn Féin's spokesperson on Foreign Affairs, Trade and Diaspora, Seán Crowe TD, also voiced his concerns over the situation.

He said: "I am concerned for the well-being of four Irish citizens who sought refuge in a Cairo mosque after taking part in a political situation. Two of them are reportedly being detained by the Egyptian security forces.

"The situation in Egypt is very volatile at the moment and there is wide spread violence since the military coup.

"The Irish embassy in Cairo needs to do all they can to ensure the safety and well-being of these Irish citizens."

(JP/IT)