2 Canadian ladies caught in Egypt beneath a journey ban requested by father in Canada

Shannon Elgazzar can see planes taking off from Cairo International Airport from her balcony.

The Canadian mom needs she might board a kind of flights dwelling to Ontario together with her daughters Ava and Noor, 10 and eight.

But she will be able to’t. 

When Elgazzar tried to go away Egypt in January 2025, she found there was a court-ordered journey ban stopping her kids from leaving the nation with out each her and their father’s permission. 

“I was in shock — there are no other words,” stated Elgazzar. “Why can’t our girls come home to Canada? That’s where their father resides.”

Elgazzar’s Egyptian-Canadian ex-husband, Mahmoud Elgazzar, obtained the journey ban in September 2024 after telling an Egyptian court docket that he was dwelling in Egypt and wanted the order to stop his ex-wife from taking the youngsters to Canada with out his consent, in line with court docket data. The software argued the transfer would deprive him of entry to the youngsters and his parental rights.

However, different authorities data, Toronto police emails and social media posts present Mahmoud Elgazzar was dwelling in Canada when the journey ban was imposed — and that he has continued to reside within the Greater Toronto Area since — whilst his daughters stay unable to go away Egypt. 

CBC News reviewed an Egyptian motion certificates — an official doc detailing a citizen’s journey historical past — displaying Mahmoud Elgazzar final left Egypt on the finish of June 2024, months earlier than the journey ban was positioned on his daughters. 

Emails with Toronto police present he was employed as a police officer with the service from no less than February 2025 till he was dismissed in June 2025. His Mississauga handle seems on a lien for a automobile he’s leasing, and he has posted a number of Google opinions for companies within the GTA for the reason that journey ban was obtained.

Father says authorized proceedings ongoing in Egypt

Mahmoud Elgazzar declined an interview request. In a written assertion to CBC News, he stated he has been dwelling in Canada since mid-2024 and selected to reply to authorized proceedings his ex-wife initiated in Egypt, the place the youngsters live. 

“The travel restrictions are court-ordered and do not prevent me from exercising my parental rights; rather, they ensure that decisions affecting the children occur within the established legal framework,” he stated in his assertion.

“Any suggestion that I am independently preventing their return to Canada outside the court process is inaccurate.”

Mahmoud Elgazzar didn’t reply to a comply with up query asking why he has not given permission for the youngsters to return to Canada, the place he resides. He additionally didn’t present documentation requested by CBC News to assist his assertion that “the Egyptian court orders concerning custody remain subject to formal legal review.”

However, in his assertion, he stated: “At all times, I have acted in accordance with my legal rights and the best interests of my children.”

Ava and Noor Elgazzar had been born in Kitchener, Ont. and raised in Ontario till after their dad and mom separated in 2022.

In July 2022, Shannon Elgazzar and the youngsters travelled to Egypt so her ladies might meet and spend time with their paternal grandparents and he or she might get her bearings after the separation earlier than returning to Canada, she stated. While in Egypt, she determined to pursue a divorce there.

CBC News has reviewed Egyptian court docket data that present Shannon Elgazzar obtained a divorce and custody of the youngsters in 2024, and a baby assist order in 2025 after studying of the journey ban. Mahmoud Elgazzar appealed the kid assist order, however that attraction was dismissed in November 2025.

Mahmoud Elgazzar’s mom additionally sought custody of the women, however the software was denied in July 2025 and an attraction was dismissed in January, in line with court docket data.

Meanwhile, Shannon Elgazzar says she has spent the final 12 months making an attempt to determine how you can return dwelling to Canada.

‘I’m drowning’

“It’s extremely frustrating when I’m trying to navigate the system with two little girls in tow, trying to keep it normal for them,” she stated. 

“In Egypt if you don’t have a proper raft you’re going to drown — I’m drowning.”

Elgazzar stated her try to carry the journey ban final 12 months was dismissed as a result of paperwork had been filed improperly by her earlier lawyer, and he or she couldn’t afford to strive once more on the time. She has additionally contacted the Canadian embassy in Cairo, Global Affairs Canada and Canadian politicians for assist. 

In an October 2025 letter, Canadian consular affairs informed her that whereas officers had been “terribly sorry to learn about the difficult situation” she’s dealing with, Canada’s capacity to intervene is “extremely limited.” 

Canadian authorities has no authorized jurisdiction

“The Government of Canada cannot interfere in another country’s judicial or legal processes, just as a foreign government cannot interfere in Canada’s judicial process,” the letter stated.

In a press release to CBC News, Global Affairs Canada confirmed it’s conscious of a case involving a journey ban for Canadian kids in Egypt. 

“Our thoughts are with the family affected by this difficult situation,” spokesperson Thida Ith stated within the assertion. “While consular officials cannot interfere in the legal process of another country, they are in close contact with the family and are providing consular assistance.”

A spokesperson for the Egyptian embassy in Ottawa stated it can’t touch upon court docket rulings, however famous there are authorized avenues to problem the ban.

Toronto-based immigration lawyer Mario Bellissimo stated instances like this aren’t unusual, and that Canadians ought to perceive the legal guidelines of one other nation earlier than travelling there. 

“Canada cannot overrule another court’s jurisdiction in a different country. So especially when you have children involved, it’s amazing how quickly options can shrink and timelines can stretch,” stated Bellissimo. 

“Schooling can be delayed and trying to reverse that initial ruling can take a lot of time.”

New lawyer will search to carry journey ban

Elgazzar lately retained one other Egyptian lawyer who makes a speciality of serving to foreigners navigate household regulation in Egypt. Khaled Mohamed Ahmed stated that, with the custody case resolved in Egypt, he believes the journey ban could be lifted. 

“It’s not that difficult or that complicated — it’s just that we need the father’s permission to do so,” stated Ahmed. “If he is not willing to cooperate, then we have to get a judge to lift that ban for us.”

If the case goes to court docket, Ahmed stated he plans to argue that Mahmoud Elgazzar will not be at the moment concerned in his daughters’ lives.

“When the court knows that, and they will have all the evidence before them … I’m very optimistic about the outcome,” stated Ahmed.

He stated he’s getting ready the case now and, as soon as it is prepared, believes it could possibly be earlier than a choose inside every week or so.

Shannon Elgazzar says she needs to get her daughters again to Canada as quickly as doable to allow them to be enrolled at school — which they aren’t attending in Egypt — and so her older daughter can endure autism testing.

“The girls’ life is there,” she stated. 

“I’m asking my fellow Canadians … be their voice. Please be my girls’ voice in Canada because right now they’re drowning here.”