The Wrong Place At The Right Time

At a time when Egyptian authorities have their hands full attempting to cope with mass civil unrest in Egypt, along come two Canadians. With the intention of entering Gaza from Egypt. No problem when the Muslim Brotherhood was still in power and Mohammad Morsi was President. Relations with Hamas, with Islamic Jihad, with the Sinai Bedouin were on an even keel. And the ruling authorities more than happy to see 'human rights activists' prepared to aid Gazans while deploring the fount of their oppression.

The thing of it is, it has become difficult to pass through the Sinai now, to enter Gaza. The Egyptian military has been desperately attempting to bring some semblance of law and order back to the Sinai. Matters had deteriorated to the point of utter chaos and lawlessness under the Muslim Brotherhood. Hamas, after all, and Islamic Jihad, are their little brothers-in-jihad. And that old saying of any friend of my enemy is my enemy too, evidently may have tripped the wire leading to the arrest of the two visiting Canadians.

An incident which surprised Tarek Loubani, a Palestinian-Canadian emergency room physician from Victoria and University hospitals and the St. Joseph’s Urgent Care Centre, in London, Ontario who often visited Gaza and brought along with him in the past cardiologists from Canada willing to teach their Gazan counterparts new life-saving techniques. And York University professor John Greyson, a filmmaker and humanitarian 'activist' for the Palestinian cause. Well known for deploring the State of Israel as a brutal oppressor.

Professor Greyson was involved with the "Canadian Boat to Gaza", whose publicity campaign was devised to "challenge the legality of the inhumane blockade of Gaza". His first such experience was aboard the Turkish Mavi Marmara, the lead vessel in the 2010 flotilla which the Israeli navy sought to deter from its Gaza-busting salvation. "What happened last year, it was such an outrage... I think that was the motivation for me this year to become more involved", he said embarking on the second flotilla.

He was one of a group of filmmakers, artists and academics who busied themselves protesting the Toronto International Film Festival's celebration of Tel Aviv films in its City-to-City program. Tantamount to a propaganda campaign, he accused at that time, angrily pulling a film of his own from the program. He was involved, needless to say, in a propaganda campaign which had his full support and enthusiastic compliance, demeaning and slandering Israel, commiserating with the Palestinians.

Not to worry, despite the excitement the event has elicited and the newspaper columns being feverishly written quoting friends, colleagues, supporters, outraged all at the unsupportable offence of arresting two Canadians and holding them for undisclosed reasons, no charges yet having been laid despite the best attempts of Canada's consular mission and the enquiries at the highest diplomatic levels in Ottawa and Cairo.

Not to worry, because Egypt has no wish to hold onto two Canadians. It has problems enough at the moment. The timing of the two Canadians was simply irrelevant, inconvenient and unfortunate. They will be released and sent on their way. No, unlikely that they'll be forwarded on to Gaza; not much flow back and forth between the Sinai crossing and the Gaza Strip. Plenty of action, though, with the Islamists carrying on their war with the Egyptian police and military.

Best to give it wide berth. There's little doubt the two intrepid humanitarians will have much to disclose about their misfortune on their speedy return to Canada. And then Professor-filmmaker John Greyson can mount a campaign against the Egyptian military and the interim government for its temerity in assuming it could incarcerate him and his friend without consequences. He can join his Hamas colleagues in berating the Israel-Egypt coalition, both involved in oppressing the Palestinians.

"Tarek is an emergency physician with a long history of international work -- do we need physicians to be there where people are getting hurt? I don't really understand this idea, that people should stay away" said their friend Justin Podur in response to the question why Loubani and Greyson would take little notice of the current atmosphere to travel to Cairo. Egyptian authorities obviously think differently.

"John Greyson's not a journalist, his film work is more artistic, but he's certainly someone who does work on social and political and international issues: those are exactly the kind of people who should be in those places", indignantly claims their colleague, Justin Podur, maintaining a blog tracking the well-being (or perceived lack of) his friends. Extolling the virtues of agitprop.

But the Prime Minister is reacting as he could be expected to, and expressing concern, and doing what he can with the diplomatic instruments at his disposal. Canada remains "deeply concerned" over the violence being experienced in Egypt. "We urge all parties to refrain from violence and engage in a meaningful political dialogue for the good of all Egyptians. Our thoughts go out to the families and friends of those killed by today's violence, and we wish a speedy recovery to the injured", went the message from Foreign Affairs Minister John Baird last week.

Amen.