Tough exit

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Popular TV shows like Amr Adib's Al-Qahira Al-Yom and Mona El-Shazli's Al-Ashera Masaan have featured first-hand accounts of Egyptians evacuating Lebanon -- with holidaymakers and breadwinners alike rushing through the jammed and risky roads to Syria. Their complaint? The shocking failure of the Egyptian Embassy to come to their aid. Viewers called in to complain, angrily, that the embassy was "not at all responsive" to their requests for evacuation: "They said there was nothing they could do for us -- that it was up to us to secure our trips out." Others reported receiving the bare minimum of largely inaccurate information. All compared their lot to that of European nationals.

Speaking to Al-Ahram Weekly by phone from Beirut on Tuesday evening, Egyptian Ambassador Hussein Derar denied any such accusation, asserting that he has been working closely with his staff to secure "as safe an exit as possible for all Egyptians who sought the embassy's help". He added, "it is not at all true that we've turned anybody down. We extend all the help we can. So far we've helped over 1,500 citizens to reach home safely and we are working around the clock in cooperation with the Lebanese and Syrian authorities to facilitate the return of many more." According to Derar, indeed, problems have been largely restricted to Egyptian employees seeking to settle accounts before leaving or Egyptians seeking to escort Lebanese spouses out of the country: "these are not normal circumstances in which to settle such issues. This is a country under attack and we are racing to get Egyptians out. For now, other issues must wait." The main obstacle is that no accurate statistics exist for Egyptians in Lebanon, since many who entered the country on tourist visas have stayed on to work. Derar says he is now concerning himself with the safety of roughly 20,000 Egyptians, some of whom may "wish to stay on". Grief and fear aside, he added, "I think it's unfair to say the embassy has let anyone down."