A Libyan court has sentenced 21 Egyptian fisherman with 3 months imprisonment after they illegally entered Libyan waters in October, officials said. Authorities confiscated both vessels involved in the illegal fishing--the Baraka Da'a Al-Waladayn and Nur al-Mostafa Mohamed. The Egyptians will be released in January 2011, according to Assistant Foreign Minister for Consular Affairs and Egyptians Abroad Mohamed Abdel Hakam. Abdel Hakam urged fishermen to respect international laws and the UN Law of the Sea Convention, in order to avoid punishments ranging from financial penalties to imprisonment and confiscation of vessels. In other developments, Saudi authorities finalized a decision and completed the necessary procedures to deport 578 Egyptian citizens who overstayed their visas during the last umrah pilgrimage season, Abdel Hakam said. Abdel Hakam also pressed Egyptian umrah pilgrims to abide by Saudi Arabian laws and remain in the country strictly during the approved dates of their visas. Umrah, sometimes called "the lesser Hajj," is a pilgrimage to Mecca that Muslims undertake throughout the year, The Hajj, in contrast, is a religious obligation for all Muslims who are physically and financially able, which occurs at the end of Ramadan. According to the Egyptian Ministry of Tourism, 575,000 Egyptians traveled to Saudi Arabia this year to perform the umrah pilgrimage.
