Cairo, 13 May:
The Libyan Minster of Justice, Ehmida Ashour and the Libyan Attorney-General, Abdel-Aziz Abdel-Hamid, arrived in Cairo on Sunday on . . .[restrict]an official visit to Egypt expected to last several days.
The two men are expected to meet a number of Egyptian officials to discuss matters of common interest and concern. In recent days, several issues have arisen affecting Libya-Egypt relations, most notably concerning migrant workers and the illegal smuggling of weapons and other goods.
On 13 May, it was reported that Egyptian security forces had seized a large consignment of weapons smuggled in from Libya, including 50 missiles, a mortar, seven machine guns and several thousand rounds of ammunition. Questions have also been raised about suspected Iranian involvment in the smuggling of weapons from Libya to the Sinai region of Egypt on the border with Israel.
Responding to concerns about illegal smuggling from Egypt to Libya, the deputy head of the Egyptian Customs Authority has also announced a moratorium on all containers shipped to Libya from Egypt, unless they are for the Libyan government, it was reported on 13 May.
Meanwhile, on 11 May, Foreign Minister Ashour Bin Khayal voiced his concerns at a summit in Sharm El Sheikh that Libya was not yet ready for the thousands of Egyptians wanting to work in the country, and 44 Egyptians found working illegally in Benghazi are expected to be deported for Egypt shortly following a brief detention. [/restrict]
