Dundalk mum's fight to get her abducted children home

A Dundalk mother whose children were taken from her by their Egyptian father in Cairo over two years ago has said she finally feels as if she is being listened to, following what she said was a “progressive” meeting with Minister for Justice Helen McEntee last week.

Mandy Kelly had gone on a trip with her husband and sons, Zayn and Kareem, who were three years old and 18 months at the time, to visit her husband’s family in February 2022.

However, when they were due to return to Ireland, Mandy says her husband told her he didn’t want to go back and worse still didn’t want their children to go back either.

“He took the boys away in a car and that was the last time I saw my two children. He had locked me in the apartment when I was in Cairo, subjected me to threats, manipulation, and demands for ransom,” Mandy told the Dundalk Democrat.

After finally getting out of the apartment, Mandy returned to Ireland and made a statement to gardai in Dundalk, telling them that the children’s father was demanding half a million euros in ransom for the return of her two children.

Since then she has been lobbying politicians and officials to try to get her children back, and finally, last week got a meeting with Helen McEntee.

“I met with Helen McEntee,” she said.

“I’ve had to lobby so hard for that, I’ve had to lobby every Fine Gael politician in the land. I’ve had to go on local radio both here and in Monaghan. I’ve had to go through the Tánaiste’s office, the Justice Department. It was just a nightmare.

“I finally got my meeting, and it was progressive. At least I finally felt as if I’ve been listened to.

“Two European arrest warrants on child abduction charges are to be issued very, very soon, within this month.

Mandy's eldest son Zayn was three years old when he and his brother were taken by their father

As she gets ready to negotiate her way through the Egyptian legal system, Mandy raised with the minister the need for parents in her situation to receive some form of legal aid from the government as she has to date covered all her legal and mediation fees, totalling over €35,000.

Mandy also raised the need for a bi-lateral agreement between Egypt and Ireland to deal with cases like hers, as Egypt is not signed up to the 1980 Hague Convention.

The need for such an agreement was raised by Alan Shatter in 2013, but hasn’t progressed since then.

“They still haven’t sat down and done anything,” Mandy said.

“In November 2022, the Minister for Foreign Affairs Simon Coveney, that was only a few months after my incident occurred and I had reached out to him… they [the government] composed an international agreement on the return of Egyptian art.

“There was an Egyptian mummy in UCC and two sides could sit down and agree on that, but they can’t sit down and talk about an actual agreement on innocent babies.”

Mandy also expressed frustration with the Department of Foreign Affairs handling of the situation, saying that requests to have her children’s passports cancelled to stop them travelling outside Egypt were either denied or ignored.

“To date, there has been no welfare checks made on my children by the Irish consulate.

Mandy's youngest son Kareem was just 18 months old when she last saw him

Mandy says that the demand for half a million euros makes her case quite unique because in child abduction cases involving a parent cash demands are rarely made, “technically, and this is what I addressed with Helen McEntee, my children are hostages in a foreign land,” she said.

The whole process has been mentally draining on Mandy, made worse, she says by the lack of information on what to do in such cases, something she hopes to rectify by becoming an advocate for parents in her situation.

“When I came back, I was just a physical, mental and emotional mess, but I returned to work six weeks after this happened because I just knew that that could be my outlet to express myself and keep my mind ticking.

“There was no guidance, no guidance book.

“All I was told was to go to your embassy, so I’m anticipating when this is finished I will be able to help parents in this situation.

“Every little step I take, it makes me feel as if I am a step closer to my children, so that keeps me going.

“I did get mentally and physically exhausted at times, but this is only natural and I have the tools to be able to cope with it, and I hope that will continue.”

Speaking after meeting Mandy Kelly, the Minister for Justice Helen McEntee said: 

“I met with Mandy Kelly today and heard about her incredibly difficult situation. 

"I expressed my admiration for her resilience. I also assured her of the Government’s ongoing support, which of course includes DFA consular assistance, as she works through the Egyptian authorities to get her children home.”