Egypt: Stories of connecting loved ones

Aly Mubarak has lived in Egypt with his wife since 2005. When the conflict erupted in Sudan in April 2023, they were suddenly cut off from their families and their three children, as all communication from their hometown was lost. The pain of not knowing if their loved ones were safe weighed heavily on their hearts.

Seeking to reconnect, Mubarak and his wife visited the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) office in Egypt, hoping to use the international phone call service to reach their families.

Mubarak recalls - in the video below - the first time they came to the ICRC office and reconnected with their loved ones. With hearts full of anticipation, worry, and fear, tears were the only way to express the overwhelming relief they felt upon hearing their families’ voices for the first time.

Since that moment, the ICRC’s international phone call service has been Mubarak’s only way to stay connected with his loved ones. He is one of many members of the migrant community in Egypt whom the ICRC supports by helping them maintain contact with their families abroad through phone calls and other means to restore and maintain contact between families.

Family separation is one of the most painful experiences a person can endure. The loss of contact and the uncertainty about the fate of a loved one can cause immense suffering. Each year, armed conflicts, violence, natural disasters, and migration tear countless families apart, forcing them to live with the anguish and uncertainty of being disconnected.

Recognizing this urgent humanitarian need, the ICRC has been working to help reconnect separated families and address the issue of missing persons for more than 150 years. 

Together with National Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies around the world, the ICRC works tirelessly to locate individuals and restore contact with their relatives. This vital work, known as Restoring Family Links (RFL), includes tracing family members, re-establishing and maintaining communication, reuniting families under specific circumstances, and seeking to clarify the fate and whereabouts of those who remain missing.

In Egypt, the ICRC, in collaboration with the Egyptian Red Crescent (ERC), provides RFL services that include reconnecting people via telephone, internet, and handwritten messages, as well as tracing missing persons. Egypt, a transit country for migrants fleeing conflict, often sees people lose contact with family members during their journey. Through its Cairo office, the ICRC helps trace, restore contact, and reunite hundreds of families separated by armed conflict, violence, disasters, or migration.