The Assistant Foreign Minister for Consular Affairs, Haddad al-Gohary, said that several hundred Egyptian citizens currently held in Libya will be released in the coming period.
Procedures for their release and the resolution of their legal status are underway to facilitate their repatriation from Libyan prisons to Egypt, he explained.
Gohary met with more than 200 families of Egyptian citizens who have gone missing in Libya, emphasizing the diligent follow-up by the Egyptian Consulate in Benghazi and the Egyptian Embassy in Tripoli on reports of missing persons in all Libyan prisons.
He urged the families of the missing to obtain information only from legitimate sources and to avoid dealing with any unverified sources who will attempt to extort money from them for false information about their loved ones.
Foreign Ministry’s efforts pay off
The Foreign Ministry’s efforts during 2025 resulted in the repatriation of more than 3,000 Egyptian citizens from Libya accused of illegal immigration, the ambassador noted, alongside the release of over 1,200 citizens from Libyan prisons.
He added that 300 bodies were repatriated at the state’s expense following the sinking of boats carrying illegal immigrants off the Libyan coast.
Gohary urged the families of missing persons to take legal action against smugglers, and human trafficking gangs who endanger the lives of citizens, charging exorbitant fees to smuggle them to European shores via illegal immigration through neighboring countries.
He emphasized the necessity of respecting entry regulations to neighboring countries by obtaining official visas and documented employment contracts in order to protect the rights and lives of immigrating Egyptian citizens.
