Libya denies preventing Egyptians from entering its territories
Libya-Egypt, Politics, 1/10/2004

Egyptian officials at al-Salloum border crossing with Libya said that the Libyan authorities have banned since yesterday midnight the entry of Egyptians who do not have a prior entry visa, and this resulted in hundreds of passengers stuck at the site.

One of the Egyptian border officials who asked to be anonymous said "we were surprised that the Libyan authorities on the other sides of the crossing who refused the entry of the Egyptians." However, the spokesman for the Libyan foreign ministry, Hasounah al-Shawish, denied that his country had imposed entry visas on Egyptians or blocking their entry at the border. Ahmad Qazzaf Addam, the coordinator of the Libyan- Egyptian relations in Cairo, said that his country did not prevent any Egyptian from crossing the border.

For his part, the Egyptian minister of information, Safwat al-Sharif, denied that the Libyan authorities had closed borders with Egypt. In an interview with the independent weekly Al-Osboa newspaper, to be published on Sunday, Al-Sherif said these reports are "absolutely untrue" and apparently aim to sow confusion and harm relations between the two "sisterly countries." There are no differences at all between Egypt and Libya, said Al-Sherif, adding that Libyan Leader Muammar Gaddafi's initiative to free his country from Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMDs) came in line with President Hosni Mubarak's call to rid the region from all WMDs. ÒThe relationship between the two leaders is strong and bilateral cooperation is at full swing,Ó he added.

Al-Salloum crossing, however, is the main venue for the crossing of thousands of Egyptians working in Libya. Officials in al-Salloum said that Libya tried to restrict to entry of Egyptians who head afterwards to Europe, illegally, via the sea.

Relations between the Egyptian president and the Libyan leader witnessed a good level of understanding at several meetings, many of them were via al-Salloum crossing.

Previous Stories:
  Qathafi phones Mubarak   (11/10/2003)
  Mubarak and the Libyan   (10/31/2003)
  Libyan- Egyptian summit in Tripoli; Mubarak: Violence will increase in Iraq   (10/30/2003)

Please add a link on your webiste pointing to ArabicNews.com and bookmark ArabicNews.com & subscribe to our daily email news bulletin.

Search