The Dutch Foreign Ministry has closed its embassy building in Cairo to the public in connection with demonstrations outside, affecting appointments as visa services handled by VFS Global continue.
The embassy has not announced a reopening date. It said people with appointments have been or will shortly be told that their appointments are being rescheduled. VFS Global’s Cairo services remain available.
Al-Qahera News reported that dozens of Egyptians demonstrated outside the embassy last week, calling for Ahmed Nasser’s release. The television channel identified Nasser as deputy head of the unofficial Union of Egyptian Youth Abroad and reported that he was detained in the Netherlands.
Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty discussed the detention of an Egyptian citizen with Dutch Foreign Minister Tom Berendsen in a call on Oct. 12, Egypt’s Foreign Ministry said. The ministry said Abdelatty sought clarification and the citizen’s release, and asked the Netherlands to protect Egypt’s embassy in The Hague under the 1961 Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations, citing reciprocity.
The ministry said the ministers would continue discussing outstanding matters while seeking to maintain friendly relations. The embassy has set no date for reopening.
