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| Sunday, 27 March 2005 |
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Editorial
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Red Sea border refugees - all Sri Lankans by Rohan Mathes The 137 refugees rounded up by the Egyptian Coast Guard authorities at their Red Sea border approximately 500 km away from Cairo. last Friday, have all been confirmed as Sri Lankans, and "job seekers" in Israel, the Director General of the Foreign Ministry for Overseas Administration Consular Affairs I. Ansar said. Ansar told the Sunday Observer that officials from the Sri Lankan Embassy in Cairo were yesterday despatched to Halayeb and Shalateen, approximately 500 km off the Egyptian capital Cairo for confirmation of their origin. The Sri Lankan Embassy officials in Cairo have reported that of the 137 Sri Lankans, three have been identified as Tamils, one Muslim, and all others as Sinhalese. The majority of them are believed to be from and around Negombo. "They have been taken by an agent to Djibouti by air and then by boat, promising jobs for them in Israel. The boat had run aground in the Red Sea and got stranded, only to be picked up by the Egyptian authorities", Ansar said.Ansar added that all 137 persons are in good health and high spirits, awaiting to be repatriated at the expense of their 'next of kin', at the earliest. The next-of-kin will be informed by Foreign Ministry officials.
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Editorial | Security | Produced by Lake House |
