News

A group of Nobel laureates have written to the British prime minister Keir Starmer urging him to intervene to help free the imprisoned writer Alaa Abd el-Fattah.

Twelve laureates including JM Coetzee, Annie Ernaux, Kazuo Ishiguro and Olga Tokarczuk have signed the letter.

“We write to you as long concerned supporters of the imprisoned writer, Alaa Abd el-Fattah,” the letter begins. “We write to you because time is running out.” »»

Layla today crosses the 60 day mark of her hunger strike with still no concrete sign of progress for Alaa.

She told a press conference yesterday: ““I think it is possible to get Alaa released and get Alaa released quickly. I still believe this is something the British government can achieve. That is what I’m betting on. I’m betting on it with my health and my life. If I collapse, obviously that is very bad for me and my family and bad for Alaa but also it is going to be very embarrassing for both the British and Egyptian governments and we really shouldn’t get there.”

There has been strong UK media interest in the case, with Channel 4 News airing a particularly a strong segment on Laila last night.

David Lammy, the UK Foreign Secretary, today met with Alaa’s mother for the first time.

He later tweeted:

“Today I met with Alaa Abd El Fattah's family.

They have campaigned tirelessly for his release. I'm focused on securing consular access, and his release as quickly as possible.

The UK will continue to raise this with the highest levels of the Egyptian Government.”

At a hearing of the APPG on Arbitrary Detention the day before the committee heard that Alaa’s case has been raised fourteen times at Ministerial level, and four times at Prime Ministerial level - with no consequent changes or repercussions.

Alaa has to this date still not received a consular visit.

At FCDO Questions on Tuesday November 26th David Lammy said he had ‘determination and resolve to see Alaa reunited with his family’ and said he had raised Alaa’s case with Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty on Monday. Laila Soueif attended the session in the Parliamentary gallery. David Lammy received question from across the house: he was pressed by Stella Creasy MP on Alaa’s lack of consular access, by Brian Leishman MP and John McDonnell MP on the leverage of the UK’s economic relationship with Egypt, and by Brendan O’Hara MP on the lack of Foreign Office support for British nationals arbitrarily detained abroad.

Alaa Abd el-Fattah is tonight, Thursday 10 October 2024, named Writer of Courage 2024. The Writer of Courage is awarded to an author who is active in defence of freedom of expression, often at great risk to their own safety and liberty, and shares the PEN Pinter Prize with the winner. The winner of the PEN Pinter Prize 2024, Arundhati Roy, made the announcement in an address at the British Library this evening, where she was joined by Naomi Klein who delivered an encomium. Alaa Abd el-Fattah was selected by Roy as her co-winner, in cooperation with English PEN. >>>>

Laila Soueif, the mother of British-Egyptian citizen Alaa Abd el-Fattah, has started a hunger strike in Cairo, in protest at her son’s continued imprisonment in Egypt after the end of his 5 year prison sentence. She does not plan to eat until he is released.

September 29th marked 5 years since Alaa Abd el-Fattah was arrested and detained in Egypt. Egypt sentenced Alaa to 5 years in prison, so based on Egypt’s own criminal law, which includes pre-trial detention in prison sentences, Alaa should have been released yesterday.

Laila Soueif’s daughters, and Alaa’s sisters, Sanaa and Mona Seif, will meet the UK’s Foreign Secretary David Lammy on Wednesday afternoon, to urge that he acts to secure Alaa’s release from prison and return to the UK as a matter of priority.

Starting her hunger strike on the first day of Alaa’s imprisonment beyond his prison sentence, Laila Soueif said:

“I will not eat again until Alaa is released. Every day that he is in prison beyond his sentence is a grave injustice, even beyond the terrible injustice that he has been imprisoned at all. Once again the Egyptian authorities have violated their own laws to persecute my son. At this stage I consider this a kidnapping as well as unlawful detention.

“Alaa is a British citizen, and it is urgent that the UK government intervene now to stop this new violation of his human rights. The Foreign Secretary David Lammy has spoken up for Alaa in the past, but he must now turn those words into action.

“My son had hope that the British government would secure his release. If they do not I fear he will spend his entire life in prison. So I am going on hunger strike for him, and I would rather die than allow Alaa to continue to be mistreated in this way.”

Laila Soueif’s hunger strike means she will not eat food and only drink water with salt to regulate her blood pressure. The 68 year old will record her vitals and publicly release them regularly to track the effect of the hunger strike on her health.

At a press conference in London on Thursday 26th September Alaa’s sisters Sanaa and Mona criticised the UK government for the lack of progress on Alaa’s case, and David Lammy’s failure to meet with them. The Foreign Office subsequently arranged a meeting between the Foreign Secretary and Alaa’s family on Wednesday (2nd October) this week. Former detainee Nazanin Zaghari Ratcliffe also attended the press conference and said: “Every single day post 29th September is almost a double injustice for Alaa.’

As Shadow Foreign Secretary David Lammy showed extensive support for Alaa’s campaign, including:

• Calling for the Egyptian ambassador to have his access to Whitehall revoked because of lack of consular access to Alaa.

• Referring to the ‘tremendous leverage’ of the ‘4 billion trading partnership with Egypt’

• Calling the previous government’s diplomacy on the case ‘weak’ and calling for ‘serious diplomatic consequences’ for the Egyptian government if Alaa was not released

The Labour Party also included a ‘right to consular assistance’ in their 2024 manifesto. The government have still not secured consular access to Alaa. [more in Notes to Editors below]

The Egyptian authorities are refusing to release Alaa on the basis of two years he spent in pre-trial detention before his verdict. But according to Egyptian law those pre-trial detention years should be counted towards his prison sentence. In 2021 Alaa was found guilty of 'spreading false news' after he shared a Facebook post about torture in Egypt. Neither the prosecution or the defence presented their case to the judge before a verdict was found.

Successive UK Prime Ministers have failed to secure Alaa’s release, or even consular access to him, despite continually raising his case at the highest levels of the Egyptian government. The UK government has not sanctioned Egypt diplomatically despite their failure to grant consular access. In 2022 Alaa went on hunger strike to the brink of death during COP27 in Egypt, which was only broken when he collapsed in his cell and was given an intravenous drip by the Egyptian authorities.

NOTES TO EDITORS

For media enquiries or requests for interviews with Sanaa or Mona Seif please email freedomforalaa@gmail.com (mailto:freedomforalaa@gmail.com) or contact Huw Jordan on 07729888709.

DAVID LAMMY’S RECORD ON ALAA

• On July 4th 2022, then Shadow Foreign Secretary David Lammy wrote to then Foreign Secretary Liz Truss to call on her to press Egyptian authorities for Alaa’s immediate release, and to meet Alaa’s family: https://x.com/DavidLammy/status/1543874549342674944 (https://x.com/DavidLammy/status/1543874549342674944)

• On November 3rd 2022 David Lammy joined Alaa's sisters at a protest sit-in outside the Foreign Office and said 'It is an outrage the Foreign Office has not even been given consular access': https://x.com/davidlammy/status/1588108604304896002 (https://x.com/davidlammy/status/1588108604304896002)

• On November 6th 2022 he hosted Alaa’s sister Mona Seif on his LBC show: https://x.com/DavidLammy/status/1589235381299736576 (https://x.com/DavidLammy/status/1589235381299736576)

• On November 8th 2022 in Parliament David Lammy called the government’s diplomacy ‘weak’ and called for ‘serious diplomatic consequences’ for the Egyptian government if Alaa was not released: https://x.com/FreedomForAlaa/status/1589971659897057280/video/1 (https://x.com/FreedomForAlaa/status/1589971659897057280/video/1)

• On November 9th 2022 on BBC Radio 4’s Today programme David Lammy described the £4 billion trade partnership with Egypt as ‘tremendous leverage’: https://x.com/BBCr4today/status/1590262697320407040 (https://x.com/BBCr4today/status/1590262697320407040)

• On the same programme David Lammy called for the Egyptian ambassador to have his access to Whitehall revoked saying: “UK officials in Egypt have no consular access to this British national and you've got to ask why is it that the Egyptian ambassador has access to Whitehall in those circumstances… I think it should stop. I don't think the government should be announcing a strategic partnership this year when in fact this case is lingering and has gone on for months and months and months and UK officials have not had access to check on his welfare.”: https://www.theguardian.com/world/2022/nov/09/britain-does-not-know-if-alaa-abd-el-fattah-still-alive-minister-admits (https://www.theguardian.com/world/2022/nov/09/britain-does-not-know-if-alaa-abd-el-fattah-still-alive-minister-admits)

• Keir Starmer also raised the case with the Prime Minister Rishi Sunak in Parliament on the same day: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZWjRwBZ253I (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZWjRwBZ253I)

• On 6th October 2023 David Lammy set out plans for a special envoy for British citizens detained abroad and told families ‘You are not forgotten’: https://www.standard.co.uk/news/uk/labour-david-lammy-nazanin-hostages-special-envoy-b1111795.html (https://www.standard.co.uk/news/uk/labour-david-lammy-nazanin-hostages-special-envoy-b1111795.html)

• The Labour Party have since included a ‘right to consular assistance’ in their 2024 manifesto: https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2022/sep/26/labour-vows-to-give-uk-citizens-abroad-legal-right-to-foreign-office-help (https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2022/sep/26/labour-vows-to-give-uk-citizens-abroad-legal-right-to-foreign-office-help) Alaa still does not have consular access.

• In 2023 the Foreign Affairs Committee published a report, following an inquiry, that was critical of the way that the FCDO handles complex detention cases of British nationals: https://committees.parliament.uk/work/6647/the-fcdos-approach-to-state-level-hostage-situations/publications/ (https://committees.parliament.uk/work/6647/the-fcdos-approach-to-state-level-hostage-situations/publications/)

ACTIONS THE FOREIGN OFFICE COULD TAKE

1 Place conditions on the $400,000,000 Egypt is due to receive from the UK in direct aid in the coming two years. Further information here: https://tinyurl.com/p9uvcejf (https://tinyurl.com/p9uvcejf).

2 Change the travel advice on the Foreign Office’s website to reflect the reality of the moment: that if you are arrested in Egypt they cannot guarantee consular access.

3 Convene a joint meeting of members of the Ministries of Defence and Trade to discuss a unified strategy.

4 Summon the Egyptian ambassador in London and inform him Alaa must be on a plane to the UK the day his sentence finishes on September 29th or his access will be restricted.

5 Announce a moratorium on any governmental assistance or promotion of new Foreign Direct Investments into Egypt.

6 Announce a moratorium on any new direct investments by companies owned by the Foreign Office, such as the scandalous green hydrogen plant above. British International Investments, which is owned by the Foreign Office, has 137

direct investments in Egypt - indexed here: https://tinyurl.com/5n8z4v4c (https://tinyurl.com/5n8z4v4c)

7 Inform the Egyptian authorities that Britain will make a negative submission at Egypt’s upcoming Universal Periodic Review at the Human Rights Council.

8 Exert pressure through the IMF’s loan negotiations with Egypt, where the UK has significant influence.

9 Reach out to European allies as part of the Foreign Secretary’s bridge-building. Alaa is also a priority figure for the EU, so coordinate with them. The EU has major leverage with Egypt now as part of an enormous new aid package.

10 Reach out to American allies. Alaa has long been a priority figure for the State Department. America has consistent and major leverage over Egypt as its second largest recipient of military equipment and other aid packages.

September 29th marked 5 years since Alaa Abd el-Fattah was arrested and detained in Egypt. Egypt sentenced Alaa to 5 years in prison, so based on Egypt’s own criminal law, which includes pre-trial detention in prison sentences, Alaa should have been released today.

Instead, Alaa's family were informed that he would serve a further two years in prison, due to pre-trial imprisonment of two years.

PRESS RELEASE:

David Lammy ‘won’t even meet us’ say sisters of imprisoned British-Egyptian citizen Alaa Abd el-Fattah

The sisters of Alaa Abd el-Fattah, the British-Egyptian citizen imprisoned in Egypt, have criticised David Lammy for failing to meet their family since becoming Foreign Secretary, saying that he ‘made promises to us in opposition, but now in government he won’t even meet us’, at a press conference in London.Item description.

For full press release click here >>>>

Alaa's book, You Have Not Yet Been Defeated, will be republished by his UK publisher, Fitzcarraldo Editions, as part of their First Decade Collection >>>>

PRE-ORDER NOW

Peter Greste, an Australian journalist with al-Jazeera, was held in the cell next to Alaa's for several months. He has been a consistent public supporter of Alaa's, and has written now for Middle East Eye about his memories with him >>>>

All of us at the campaign to Free Alaa welcome the news today that David Lammy has been elected once again as the MP for Tottenham and will now serve as the Foreign Secretary of the UK. Omar Robert Hamilton, Alaa's cousin and editor, writes HERE about the prospects for Alaa's freedom under Labour.

Dear Members of the United Nations Working Group on Arbitrary Detention,

We, the undersigned 27 freedom of expression and human rights organisations, are writing regarding the ongoing and arbitrary detention of the British-Egyptian citizen and award-winning writer and activist, Alaa Abd el-Fattah, in Egypt.

In November 2023, our organisations wrote to the United Nations Working Group on Arbitrary Detention (UNWGAD) regarding the urgent appeal on behalf of Mr. Abd el-Fattah that had been filed with the UNWGAD. Mr. Abd el-Fattah and his family are represented before the UNWGAD by an international counsel team led by barrister Can Yeğinsu.

We are writing to enquire as to whether there is any update in respect of that urgent appeal and the possible adoption by the UNWGAD of an Opinion in relation to Mr. Abd el-Fattah’s case.

Mr. Abd el-Fattah has spent years imprisoned in Egypt on charges related to his writing and activism. Despite being a British citizen, he continues to be denied consular visits. His ongoing arbitrary detention is of serious concern to our organisations.

We therefore reiterate our support for the submission filed with the UNWGAD on 14 November 2023, and again urge the UNWGAD to consider that submission, under its Urgent Action procedure, and issue its Opinion in Mr. Abd el-Fattah’s case at the earliest opportunity.

Yours sincerely,

Brett Solomon, Executive Director, Access Now

Ahmed Samih Farag, General Director, Andalus Institute for Tolerance and Anti-Violence Studies

Quinn McKew, Executive Director, ARTICLE 19

Bahey eldin Hassan, Director, Cairo Institute for Human Rights Studies (CIHRS)

Jodie Ginsberg, Chief Executive Officer, Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ)

Ahmed Attalla, Executive Director, Egyptian Front for Human Rights

Samar Elhussieny, Programs Officer, Egyptian Human Rights Forum (EHRF)

Sayed Nasr, Executive Director, EgyptWide for Human Rights

Jillian C. York, Director for International Freedom of Expression, Electronic Frontier Foundation

Daniel Gorman, Director, English PEN

Wadih Al Asmar, President, EuroMed Rights

James Lynch, Co-Director, FairSquare

Khalid Ibrahim, Executive Director, Gulf Centre for Human Rights (GCHR)

Mostafa Fouad, Head of Programs, HuMENA for Human Rights and Civic Engagement

Baroness Helena Kennedy LT KC, Director, International Bar Association’s Human Rights Institute

Alice Mogwe, President, International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH), within the framework of the Observatory for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders

Liesl Gerntholtz, Director, Freedom To Write Center, PEN America

Grace Westcott, President, PEN Canada

Romana Cacchioli, Executive Director, PEN International

Antoine Bernard, Director of Advocacy and Assistance, Reporters Sans Frontières

Ricky Monahan Brown, President, Scottish PEN

Ahmed Salem, Executive Director, Sinai Foundation for Human Rights (SFHR)

Mohamad Najem, Executive Director, SMEX

Timothy Kaldas, Deputy Director, The Tahrir Institute for Middle East Policy (TIMEP)

Aline Batarseh, Executive Director, Visualizing Impact

Menna Elfyn, President, Wales PEN Cymru

Miguel Martín Zumalacárregui, Director of the HRD Programme, World Organisation Against Torture (OMCT), within the framework of the Observatory for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders

LINK

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International Counsel acting for Alaa Abd el-Fattah and his family have today filed a petition requesting urgent action from the United Nations Working Group on Arbitrary Detention over his continuing and unjust imprisonment in Egypt. >>>>

MEPs Hannah Neumann and MEP Jan-Christoph Oetjen referred to Alaa in a debate at the European Parliament, with Neumann referring to him as the “prominent face of the Arab Spring”

TORONTO, September 19, 2023 — Alaa Abd el-Fattah, a leading pro-democracy writer imprisoned in Egypt, has won PEN Canada’s One Humanity Award.

The award will be presented at a ceremony on Saturday, Sept. 23, 2023. The ceremony, titled “Raising our Voices: PEN Canada Awards & Readings in Solidarity with Persecuted Writers”, will be hosted by Garvia Bailey and takes place as part of the Toronto International Festival of Authors (TIFA). Mr. Abd el-Fattah, who is currently serving a five-year sentence in Wadi al-Natroun prison, will have Sanaa Seif his sister receive it on his behalf. The event is open to the public. >>>>

26 July: PEN International and English PEN denounce the persistent failure to secure the release of British-Egyptian writer Alaa Abd El-Fattah by the British government and Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, despite their pledge in 2022 to work ‘hard to secure his release’. The UK’s inability to secure Alaa Abd El-Fattah’s release for over eight months after Sunak's meeting with the Egyptian President in Sharm el-Sheikh is profoundly disappointing.

Despite the family’s relentless campaigning for his right to consular access, the UK government has failed to secure consular visits for Alaa Abd El-Fattah, an arbitrarily detained British writer who faced an unfair trial, and was tortured and ill-treated in prison. We repeat our call on the UK Government to uphold its pledge and take all necessary actions to end Alaa Abd El-Fattah’s ordeal and ensure his freedom. >>>>

Over 100 UK Parliamentarians from all major political parties have written to the Foreign Secretary Rt. Hon James Cleverly MP on 3 July 2023, laying out practical steps Foreign Office can take to help free imprisoned British-Egyptian writer, Alaa Abd el-Fattah, including for the UK "to take the lead on a joint statement on Egypt at the UN Human Rights Council, and to update the UK’s travel advice for the country" stating that "British leadership is necessary and critical".

On 3 August 2023, a response was received from Lord Tariq Ahmad of Wimbledon, the Minister of State for the Middle East and North Africa. The letter can be read in full below. Caabu will continue to press the British government to give greater priority to this case and demand that Ala'a Abd el Fattah is released

Alaa’s sister, Sanaa, speaks powerfully about her brother and the international campaign for his release at the 2023 Freedom Forum: LINK

At its meeting on 14.06.2023, the Committee on Human Rights and Humanitarian Aid adopted a joint statement by its members through the parliamentary groups of SPD, CDU/CSU, Bündnis 90/Die Grünen and FDP on the situation of human rights in Egypt. The LINKE abstained and the AfD voted against the declaration. The statement reads as follows: LINK

Lord Ahmad visits Egypt. Alaa’s family wait for good news, or for at least a consular visit to have been secured.

A powerful new piece in the LA Review of Books reflects on Alaa gaining access to music after his hunger strike: LINK.

Watch the video here.

The House Foreign Affairs Committee heard testimony on the Foreign Office’s approach to state level hostage situations.

With the help of Fair Square Projects we submitted written evidence, which you can read here https://committees.parliament.uk/writtenevidence/117411/html/

"The pledges made during COP27 by world leaders are - I think - what kept Alaa from returning to hunger strike, after he nearly died."

But 4 months on and nothing has happened.

Family press release: https://tinyurl.com/2ekbkrhl

Activists in Glasgow organise a solidarity event to build up the network of people working to free political prisoners in Egypt: LINK

Lord Ahmad’s tweet

Lord Ahmad tweeted: “Yesterday @JamesCleverly & I met with Laila Soueif and @Monasosh to discuss the ongoing detention of their son and brother @Alaa. His welfare and release remains a priority for the UK Government. We will continue to call on the Egyptian authorities for as long as it is necessary.”

At Foreign Office Questions, Vicky Foxcroft - Alaa’s cousin’s MP - asked “Will the Foreign Secretary commit to meeting with Alaa’s family to discuss at greater length what the UK Government is doing to place diplomatic pressure on Egypt?"

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Please read here the family statement detailing what Alaa has been going through inside and how close to death he came while world leaders were in Egypt for COP27 >>>>

In a dramatic and historic week, world leaders flew in to Sharm el-Sheikh and repeatedly called for Alaa’s freedom. These included Rishi Sunak, Boris Johnson, Olaf Scholz, Emmanuel Macron, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights.

Meanwhile, Alaa’s family lost contact with him after he began his water strike.

The dramatic events of the week were recorded and published via a rolling press release, which you can still read here: https://tinyurl.com/27pwupd2

A rolling press release was maintained and updated through the very tumultuous period of COP27 in Egypt. You can read it here >>>>

After seven months on hunger strike, surviving for over 150 days on 100 calories a day, and with no progress being made on his case, and no consular access granted to the British government, Alaa today returns to a zero calorie strike.

He tells his mother he will stop drinking water on the first day of COP27, November 6th.

He writes to his mother:

”You know the story, but it’s important that I tell it again. This journey, I’ve walked it while mostly looking behind me, because I could see nothing in front of me except extinction .. the abyss. Gradually, with each step, each delay, something reached me .. from a visit, from a letter, from a book, an image, from the book, from news of the campaign and news of Khaled. Things changed and I started looking towards the future, a future for us as a family.

If one wished for death then a hunger strike would not be a struggle. If one were only holding onto life out of instinct then what’s the point of a struggle? If you’re postponing death only out of shame at your mother’s tears then you’re decreasing the chances of victory ..

Today is the last day that I will take a hot drink, or rather, since I’ll count the days from when the lights come on at 10am - tomorrow, Tuesday, just before the lights come on, I will drink my last cup of tea in prison. And after 5 days, when the lights come on on Sunday November 6, I shall drink my last glass of water. What will follows is unknown.

This week passed lightly and the next will pass lightly too. I’ve carried on with my routine as normal because I’ve taken a decision to escalate at a time I see as fitting for my struggle for my freedom and the freedom of prisoners of a conflict they’ve no part in, or they’re trying to exit from; for the victims of of a regime that’s unable to handle its crises except with oppression, unable to reproduce itself except through incarceration.

The decision was taken while I am flooded with your love and longing for your company.

Much love and till we meet soon ..

Alaa”

In light of the new government taking office, Greenpeace UK’s new executive directors, Areeba Hamid and Will McCallum, have issued the following statement about the urgent case of Alaa Abd el-Fattah, a dual British-Egyptian citizen currently on hunger strike in an Egyptian jail:

“Greenpeace UK is calling for Alaa Abd el-Fattah’s safe release and return to the UK to be prioritised across all UK diplomatic channels.

“We know the UK government has spoken about this case. Alaa’s case was raised twice by former Prime Minister Boris Johnson. Liz Truss, as Foreign Secretary, told Parliament she was “working very hard for his release.” The Minister for the Middle East and North Africa said the government was “urgently seeking consular access”. That was on May 30th.

“Now Alaa’s life is at serious risk. He is out of hope and has been on hunger strike since 2nd April 2022. Since 26th May, he has been consuming 100 calories a day – a teaspoon of honey and a bit of milk is all that’s been keeping him alive.

“It is vital that the UK goes beyond lip service and uses its significant leverage to release Alaa and other prisoners, or else risk tacitly endorsing this pattern.

“This is especially the case now. COP27, just a few days away, will be a moment of intense public scrutiny on Egypt. We understand that the UK government has lent significant support to their Egyptian counterparts to deliver a complex logistical operation and to secure the legacy of the Glasgow climate. We ask that you also ensure that the UK prioritises securing the release of political prisoners, not least its own citizens such as Alaa.

“This is a crucial summit in which we urge the UK to play a leading role on the issue of climate finance, which at present is vastly insufficient. But the UK government must also recognise the dire situation of Egypt’s human rights. You cannot have climate justice without social justice. We have also written privately to the UK government on this issue.”

LINK

“Politicians have written to the foreign secretary urging him to limit the UK's engagement with the upcoming COP27 climate summit in Egypt until its government frees a pro-democracy activist.

British-Egyptian Alaa Abd el-Fattah has been in prison for almost a decade and was sentenced to five years last December after being accused of spreading false news.

Egypt continues to deny consular access to him, and he has been on hunger strike for more than six months.

Hollywood stars including Dame Judi Dench, Emma Thompson, Mark Ruffalo and Carey Mulligan have joined the campaign for his release, along with British-Iranian Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe, who met his sister, Sanaa, as she holds a sit-in protest outside the Foreign Office in London to bring attention to her brother's plight.

She said her brother was "losing hope that the British government intends to do anything to save him

Now, 67 MPs and peers have written to James Cleverly, to "strongly encourage [the Foreign Secretary] to make clear to your Egyptian counterparts that Britain's engagement with COP27 will be seriously undermined by the continued mistreatment of one of its citizens".

In the letter, signed by politicians on all sides, they call for "urgency", writing: "Alaa's life is at serious risk. He is out of hope and has been on hunger strike since 2 April 2022.

"Since 26 May, he has been consuming 100 calories a day - a teaspoon of honey and a bit of milk is all that has been keeping him alive.

Today he is on day 189 of his strike. He may not live for much longer."

The signatories say COP27, due to start in Egypt on 6 November, "will be a moment of intense public scrutiny" for Egypt, and they urge Mr Cleverly to use the opportunity to secure Abd el-Fattah's freedom.

Sky News has contacted the Foreign Office for a response.”

READ ON SKY NEWS

PRESS RELEASE

Today the family of imprisoned writer, Alaa Abd el-Fattah, will begin an open-ended sit-in outside the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development office in London [here].

Alaa, a British citizen, has been imprisoned in Egypt for most of the nine years since president Abdelfattah el-Sisi came to a power in a military coup.

On Tuesday October 18th Alaa will reach his 200th day on hunger strike, surviving on only 100 calories a day, protesting the Egyptian authorities' refusal of consular access for British officials.

British officials have been requesting to visit Alaa since December 2021. His case was raised twice by former Prime Minister Boris Johnson, while Liz Truss, as Foreign Secretary, told Parliament she was “working very hard for his release.” James Cleverly, the new Foreign Secretary, wrote that he was “urgently seeking consular access” on May 30th.

But consular access has never been granted.

David Lammy, Alaa's sisters' MP, said: “For months, Alaa’s family have courageously fought his cause and it is a sign of their desperation and the chronic lack of progress that Sanaa has had to take this step. Alaa is a British citizen at death’s door, languishing in prison for his political beliefs. As the eyes of the world turn to Egypt as host of COP27, this grave situation requires the Foreign Secretary’s urgent intervention. It is now imperative that he meet with Alaa’s family and explain the steps he is taking to ensure Alaa’s welfare and secure his release.”

David Lammy will visit the sit-in at 5pm.

Alaa's sister, Sanaa Seif, said "We are running out of time to save my brother's life. After months of being told that his case is being raised by officials I feel I have no options left other than to stay in front of the Foreign Office until the government takes serious action. In ten months the British government has failed to even gain consular access for my brother. On the inside, Alaa is doing everything he can, he’s been on partial hunger strike for 200 days trying to get his consular visit - he's pushed himself to the brink of death, and we need an urgency and a determination from the British government to match his. Why are they not asserting their right to visit him? Why are they not demanding his release? The thought that my brother could be hospitalised before the British government takes serious action is unbearable - I can’t let that happen. These months of neglect have likely already caused irreparable long-term damage to his body. The UK has massive leverage with Egypt, particularly in the lead up to COP - why is it not using it? The government's requests are rebuffed one day, and it signs deals for billions in new investments in Egypt the next. We urgently need James Cleverly to cut through the chaos and finish the job that the government has been claiming for months that it is working on. Raising his case is clearly not enough - Alaa thinks that he's going to die in prison, he is not going to stop resisting with his body because he has nothing left. I feel I have no choice but to do everything in my power to make sure he is not alone, that we’re here doing everything we can to bring him home safe.”

Other Notes

Alaa is an Amnesty International Individual at Risk and Amnesty activists will be attending the sit-in at times in solidarity with the family.

The Guardian yesterday published a profile of Sanaa, and today ran a Long Read by Naomi Klein on the moral crisis of Egypt's hosting of COP27.

The investment deal Sanaa is referring to is the recent Memorandum of Understanding signed with Globaleq, a company 70% owned by British International Investment, which is the development finance institution of the government.

Contact & Summary

For media enquiries and to arrange an interview, please email freedomforalaa@gmail.com

For links, media and a timeline please visit www.freealaa.net

Photo Opportunity

WHO: Sanaa Seif, David Lammy

WHAT: protest and sit-in outside FCDO, with various banners calling for release of Alaa Abdel Fattah

WHERE: FCDO building, King Charles Street, London SW1A 2AH

WHEN: Tuesday 18 October (5pm-6pm), with sit-in to follow

“Today, ahead of the opening of its major new exhibition ‘Hieroglyphs: unlocking ancient Egypt’, sponsored by the oil and gas company BP, the Museum is being urged to speak out in support of human rights in Egypt. A letter signed by leading cultural figures, climate organisations, workers’ groups and scientists, calls on the Museum to lend its voice to the international call for the release of prisoners of conscience before the COP27 Climate Summit taking place in Egypt in November. “ >>>>

“SAN FRANCISCO—The Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) is honored to announce that blogger, software developer, activist, and political prisoner Alaa Abd El-Fattah, abortion rights technology organization Digital Defense Fund, and iFixit CEO and co-founder Kyle Wiens will receive the 2022 EFF Awards for their vital work in helping to ensure that technology supports freedom, justice, and innovation for all people.

The EFF Awards recognize specific and substantial technical, social, economic, or cultural contributions in diverse fields including journalism, art, digital access, legislation, tech development, and law.

The awards will be presented at a live ceremony at 6 p.m. PT, Thursday, November 10 at The Regency Lodge, 1290 Van Ness Ave. in San Francisco.”

Read on >>>>

The votes are in and the people have spoken. From a list of 50 top thinkers we presented in the summer issue, our readers chose . . . >>>>

The first official statement from 10 Downing Street about Alaa has been released. In a standalone paragraph in a press release following a phone call between the leaders of Britain and Egypt, it wrote:

“The Prime Minister and President Sisi discussed resolving the consular case of Alaa Abdel Fattah, and the Prime Minister expressed his hope for swift and positive progress on the issue.”

We at the Free Alaa campaign find this to be firm and encouraging language, asserting that bilateral relations between the two countries cannot return to business as usual while Alaa remains in prison.

You can read the full press release here: https://www.gov.uk/government/news/pm-call-with-president-abdel-fattah-al-sisi-of-egypt-25-august-2022

Helsinki Commission Co-Chairman and OSCE Parliamentary Assembly Special Representative on Political Prisoners Rep. Steve Cohen (TN-09) released a letter calling for Secretary Blinken to prioritize “the swift release of Mr. Abd el-Fattah” >>>>

This is from our August 2nd newsletter update:

“Today, Alaa is on his 122nd day of a hunger strike.

Alaa’s mother Laila finally managed to see him on Sunday after a terrifying week of being denied visitation. Alaa is more fragile than he’s ever been and things at Wadi el-Natrun Prison complex are getting uglier.

Alaa sounded desperate. He said his continued isolation is distorting his ability to think or to form a coherent picture of the outside world.

It’s been three years of visits behind a glass barrier, of not being able to hug his mother. Alaa needs human contact. He needs a radio, newspapers. He needs a consular visit from the British embassy. More than anything, he needs to be free.” >>>>

14 US lawmakers yesterday sent a letter to their British counterparts offering their support in their efforts to free Alaa - and flagging that “the current quiet diplomacy will not secure his freedom.”

Read more HERE.

“English PEN has appointed imprisoned writer and activist Alaa Abd El-Fattah as an Honorary Member.

Alaa Abd El-Fattah, a British-Egyptian writer and activist, is currently serving a five-year prison sentence in Egypt. Today marks his 100th day on hunger strike. “

Read on >>>>

On June 21st, the Foreign Secretary told parliament that she is “working very hard to secure the release” of Alaa.

The British embassy in Cairo have been trying to secure consular access to Alaa since he acquired British citizenship in December 2021 – but have been stonewalled by the Egyptians. Consular access to citizens is a cornerstone of international law.

On July 4th, the Foreign Secretary met with the Egyptian Foreign Minister in London, and the family were optimistic that things were about to improve for Alaa. But, the opposite has happened, no consular access has been granted, Truss herself has not mentioned the case again.

Sameh Shoukry, the Foreign Minister of Egypt, arrived in London for talks with the Foreign Secretary, Liz Truss and was met with a letter signed by 34 MPs and Lords expressing their opposition to the imprisonment of Alaa and hoping that “his release will indeed be secured soon, and that he will be allowed to travel to the United Kingdom.”

This comes after Truss confirmed to parliament on June 21st, that she “is working very hard to secure [Alaa’s] release” and would be bringing it up with Shoukry on an upcoming visit to London.

Read the letter HERE.

Geneviève Garrigos, présidente de la 7e commission du Conseil de Paris, et huit autres élus du Conseil de Paris appellent, dans une tribune au « Monde », à la libération d’Alaa Abdel Fatah, militant des droits humains, emprisonné en Égypte et en grève de la faim depuis le 2 avril 2022. >>>>

Sanaa recently met with Green Party co-chair Omid Nouripour and Green Party MP Tobias Bacherle - who wrote a powerful statement outlining the credible steps needed to be taken by the Egyptian government, which concluded with a demand to release Alaa.

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Hollywood stars have pleaded with Liz Truss to intervene to help free a British-Egyptian pro-democracy activist as he marks the 74th day of his hunger strike.

Dame Judi Dench, Emma Thompson, Mark Ruffalo and Carey Mulligan are among the signatories of a letter directed at the Foreign Secretary and her US counterpart in aid of Alaa Abd El-Fattah.

Mr Abd el-Fattah, 40, has spent most of the past decade behind bars in Egypt and last December was sentenced to five years in prison after being accused of spreading false news.

His sister, Sanaa Seif, and friend Khalid Abdalla, the actor who plays Dodi Fayed in The Crown, were among those to raise the case at a press conference in the Houses of Parliament on Tuesday. >>>>

The sister of a British dual national human rights activist held in a Cairo jail and on the 74th day of a hunger strike, on Tuesday urged the UK foreign secretary to publicly demand that Alaa Abd El Fattah is saved from death by being released.

Sanaa Seif was speaking at an event attended by Richard Ratcliffe, the husband of Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe, the released British-Iranian dual national, and Gurpreet Singh, the brother of Jagtar Singh Johal – a Sikh activist from Dunbarton detained by the Indian police nearly five years ago. >>>>

18 May / Sky News

18 May / BBC News

24 May / BBC Radio 4 Today

25 May / The New Statesman

27 May / The Intercept

29 May / The Sunday Times

29 May / Channel 4 News

5 June / The Observer

A group of MPs and peers has written to the foreign secretary urging her to take action to help a British citizen being held in "inhumane" conditions as a political prisoner in Egypt.Alaa Abd El-Fattah, a dual British-Egyptian citizen, became a prominent pro-democracy activist during the Tahrir Square demonstrations in Cairo in 2011 which led to the downfall of then president Hosni Mubarak.

He was recently sentenced to five years behind bars for sharing a Facebook post about human rights abuses in Egyptian prisons in 2019 and he has been on hunger strike since last month.He has spent eight of the last ten years in prison.

A letter to Liz Truss signed by 10 MPs - including Labour's Ben Bradshaw, Tory David Jones and Liberal Democrat Layla Moran - and 17 members of the House of Lords - says he is being held in "inhumane" conditions.

They say Mr Abd El-Fattah, father of a ten-year-old son, has been deprived for two-and-a-half years of reading materials, exercise, sunlight or bedding.

At his trial, in a state security emergency court, the defence was not granted access to the case file and no appeal of the five-year sentence is possible, the letter said.

It said the British embassy has been requesting consular access but this has not been granted.

"If this situation continues, we are concerned a dangerous precedent will be set for British citizens overseas and the values we uphold," the MPs and peers said.

"In turn his case must be dealt with robustly."

The letter from MPs and peers called on the government to "use all means possible" to secure consular access for Mr Abd El-Fattah, insist on immediate improvements to his conditions and a transfer out of the maximum security prison.

It also asks ministers to press for his release "either within Egypt or to the UK".

Meanwhile shadow foreign secretary David Lammy said Mr Abd El-Fattah's treatment by the Egyptian authorities has become "increasingly cruel and degrading".

"Alaa Abdel-Fattah, a British citizen and courageous voice for democracy in Egypt, has spent years in prison for the crime of sharing a Facebook post," he posted on social media."

His treatment by the Egyptian authorities has become increasingly cruel and degrading."Mr Abd El-Fattah's family say his situation is deteriorating and the UK government needs to put more pressure on the Egyptian authorities to secure his release.

Mona Seif, Mr Abd El-Fattah's sister recently told the Independent, after visiting him in prison: "He is worried that he is entering his second month of full hunger strike, a month where he will be in complete isolation."

He told me that even if he resists, he cannot trust his body will not fail him.”

He is also worried during this time that they will take advantage of the fact that he is in complete isolation and use extreme force with him, subject him to more torture."

Chris Doyle, director of the Council for Arab British Understanding, said Liz Truss must act because Mr Abd El-Fattah's situation was now "critical".

"It is vital that the British government does everything it can at the highest level to secure the release of Alaa Abd El-Fattah. After seven weeks of hunger strike his condition is critical and pressing."

The Egyptian authorities have the opportunity to release him, not least for him to leave to the UK where he wishes to go to. The bare minimum should be that Egypt grants full consular access immediately."

The Egyptian government has previously denied accusations concerning prison conditions, and has defended judicial decisions against foreign criticism, including over Mr Abd El-Fattah's conviction.

7th May, Zarah Sultana, MP for Coventry South, has today sent a letter urging the Foreign Secretary, Lizz Truss, to intervene for Alaa. Read and share it HERE.

3 May, U.S. Senator Bob Menendez (D-N.J.), Chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, today was joined by Senator Marco Rubio (R-Fla.), Ben Cardin (D-Md.), Time Kaine (D-Va.), Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.), Chris Coons (D-Del.), Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.), Jim Moran (R-Kan.), Thom Tillis (R-N.C.), and John Cornyn (R-Texas) in introducing a Senate Resolution to commemorate World Press freedom Day and to recognize growing threats to press freedom and free expression worldwide.

Read it HERE.

“A British citizen held and tortured in a maximum security prison in Egypt, has said goodbye to his family as his health deteriorates while he enters the second month of a hunger strike demanding the right to a consular visit.”

Read the article HERE.

Statement by Alaa’s family: Day 10 of full hunger strike

When I visited Alaa on April 4, in Tora Maximum Security 2, he told me he had started a hunger strike two days earlier, on the first day of Ramadan.

This is not the first time Alaa has gone on hunger strike, but this time things feel different.

For two and a half years he has been kept in a cell without sunlight, with no books, no exercise. His visitations have been cut to one family member, for twenty minutes a month, through glass, with not a moment of privacy or contact. For two and a half years he has been subjected to a personal vendetta, living under the complete control of a prison officer bent on punishing him.

National Security officer, #Ahmed_Fekry, physically assaulted Alaa the moment he set foot in his prison - stripping him, blindfolding him, beating and threatening him. Since that moment, Fekry has been in complete control of Alaa’s life. He is locked in a black hole beyond the realm of law or time.

In Alaa’s most recent trial, he was not allowed to see a copy of the case file and was sentenced without either the prosecution or the defense having made their cases. But we know that he was accused of retweeting a post about the circumstances surrounding the death of a prisoner. That prisoner was under the supervision of Ahmed Fekry.

For two and a half years now Alaa has been under Fekry’s complete control. Lawyer’s visits - when they are allowed - take place with Fekry listening. Even visits by Alaa’s son took place under his torturer’s supervision - driving Alaa to suspend his own son’s visits.

Many prisoners suffer even worse conditions than Alaa’s - and he has been witness to serious crimes committed against them. He, and we on his behalf, have filed dozens of complaints with the Public Prosecutor about the range of violations being constantly perpetrated inside prison. They have gone entirely ignored.

Here is one, particularly, horrific example:

On March 2021, Alaa told the courts he heard prisoners being tortured with electricity in a cell close to him. He submitted an official complaint to the judiciary and we, in turn, submitted a complaint to the Public Prosecutor [10579 on March 9th 2021 ]. Authorities came and questioned Alaa in his cell, then showed his testimony to the officer and prison guard he accused of torture. After the investigating authorities left, Ahmed Fekry entered the ward with a phalanx of guards, to the cell where Alaa previously heard the electric shock being used, forcing Alaa to listen as an inmate screamed repeatedly “I never asked you to submit a complaint on my behalf.”

Alaa was sentenced to five years in December. The two years he served in pre-trial detention before that do not count towards it. The sentence cannot be appealed. This is why he has been driven to hunger strike. A full, open, hunger strike.

He has two demands:

The first is as an Egyptian citizen: to assign a judge to investigate the complaints he has already submitted, which document the violations he has been subjected to since the day he was abducted on September 29, 2019.

The second is as a British citizen: for the British Consulate to be allowed to visit him in prison.

And to enable him to communicate with our lawyers in the U.K so that they can take all possible legal measures regarding not only the violations he has been subjected to, but all the crimes against humanity he has witnessed during his imprisonment.

These demands have been submitted in an official report to the Public Prosecutor [16270, ِApril 5th 2022]

Alaa recently gained British citizenship through our mother, Laila Soueif, who was born in London in May 1956 while her mother, Fatma Moussa, was there doing her PhD (The Influence of the Oriental Tale on English Romanticism). All three of us - Alaa, Mona and Sanaa - all now hold British citizenship in addition to our Egyptian. We did not explore our right to British citizenship until, in 2019, it became clear that Sisi’s prisons would refuse to release our family and we had to find some way out of this impossible ordeal. Through lawyers in England, we enquired about our rights under British law and began a process that, now three years later, has resulted in Alaa having a British passport issued.

And so, Alaa is asking for urgent action from both Egypt and Britain’s judicial institutions; and we join him in his call.

Mona and Sanaa

Sisters of Alaa Abd el-Fattah

Detained in Sisi’s prisons since 2013

April 11 2022

#FreeAlaa

Read it on Facebook HERE.

Associated Press: “A leading Egyptian pro-democracy activist who has been imprisoned for more than 3 1/2 years has obtained a British passport, his family announced Monday. The move is likely meant to pressure Egyptian authorities to release him.”

Read the news story HERE.

The editorial opens:

“You Have Not Yet Been Defeated” is the title of an anthology of writing by an imprisoned blogger and activist in Egypt, Alaa Abdel Fattah. He has been detained by every Egyptian leader during his lifetime. His family announced he began a hunger strike April 2 to protest harsh conditions in prison. He has not yet been defeated, and must not be.

Read full editorial HERE

News About Alaa