Government condemns freed Egyptian activist’s ‘abhorrent’ social media posts
The government condemned an activist’s “disgusting” social media posts, which sparked outrage. Returning to the UK from detention in Egypt.
Alaa Abd El-Fattah, a dual British-Egyptian citizen, was detained in Egypt in September 2019. In December 2021, he was sentenced to five years in prison on charges of spreading false news.
The prison sentence was described by UN investigators as a violation of international law, and Mr Abd El-Fattah was released after being pardoned by Egyptian president Abdel-Fattah el-Sisi.
He returned to England on Boxing Day.
However, since 2010, posts have emerged in which the activist called for violence against “Zionists” and the police.
These appear to be from Mr. Abd El-Fattah’s X account but could not be verified.
Dual citizen Alaa Abd El-Fattah was detained in Egypt in September 2019 (PA Archive)
Dear Keir Starmer to have Faced criticism for celebrating activist’s return. The Prime Minister said on Friday that he was “delighted” to have Mr Al-Fattah reunited with his loved ones in the UK.
“[They] He must feel a deep sense of relief,” he wrote of Sir Keir X.
“I want to express my gratitude to Alaa’s family and everyone who worked and campaigned for this moment.”
It is understood Sir Keir was not aware of the social media posts at the time and a No 10 source rejected the idea that welcoming Mr Abd El-Fattah’s return was an endorsement of his political views.
In a statement updated Sunday, Ministry of Foreign Affairs The spokesman said: “Mr Al-Fattah is a British citizen.
“Seeing him released from custody and reunited with his family in the UK has been a long-standing priority of successive governments.
“The government condemns Mr. Al-Fattah’s historic tweets and considers them disgusting.”
Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer has been criticized for his comments on Mr Abd El-Fattah’s return to the UK (PA Wire)
Board of Deputies of British Jews He said they had expressed their concerns to the government and that there was an “urgent need” to find out whether Mr Abd El-Fattah still held the views expressed online.
They said: “The social media history emerging from Alaa and Al-Fattah is deeply concerning.
“His earlier extremist and violent rhetoric, targeting ‘Zionists’ and whites generally, threatened British Jews and the wider public.
“The cross-party campaign for such an individual and the warm reception given by the Government reveals a broken system with a surprising lack of due diligence by the authorities.”
Meanwhile, Jewish Leadership Council He expressed concern for the safety of Jewish communities following recent anti-Semitic attacks in Manchester and Australia’s Bondi Beach.
The council said: “We are appalled by the enthusiastic reception of Alaa Abd El-Fattah by the UK Government.
“The Prime Minister recently reiterated his determination to eradicate antisemitism from our country but has now shared his delight that someone who advocates the killing of Zionists has come to the UK.
“We know there are people who are hearing calls to action from Heaton Park, Manchester and Bondi Beach.
“The government celebrated Mr Abdel Fattah’s arrival as a victory; British Jews will see it as another reminder of the danger we face.”
Former Conservative Party leader Iain Duncan SmithLobbying for Mr Abd El-Fattah’s release, he called on police to investigate his comments.
“I… regret signing the letter calling for the release of Alaa Abd al-Fattah, his views that have since come to light are utterly disgusting.
He wrote on X: “Had I known these things, I would not have signed the letter. I call on the police to investigate the nature of these extreme comments.”
Mr Abd El-Fattah was a leading voice in Egypt’s 2011 Arab Spring uprising and went on a hunger strike behind bars.
In 2014, the blogger’s posts on Twitter cost him a nomination for the European Parliament’s Sakharov Prize.
The group supporting him withdrew his nomination for the human rights award, saying they discovered a 2012 tweet calling for the killing of Israelis.
Meanwhile, shadow justice secretary Robert Jenrick said the prime minister’s remarks constituted a “personal, public endorsement”.
“Given Mr. Abd El-Fattah’s extremist statements about violence, Jews and the police, this was a serious error of judgment,” he wrote.
In a letter to Sir Keir, Mr Jenrick asked him to clarify whether he was aware of Mr Abd El-Fattah’s statements before saying he was “delighted” to be released.
“Do you condemn them under any circumstances, including sanctioning the killing of Israelis and ‘Zionists’ and calls for the killing of police and the burning of Downing Street?”
He asked whether the Prime Minister would “set the record straight” and withdraw the “solid endorsement”.
“No one should be imprisoned arbitrarily or for peaceful dissent. But the prime minister should not place the authority of his office behind someone whose words engage in the language of racism and bloodshed,” he said.
