LONDON, Dec 26 (Reuters) – High-profile activist Alaa Abd el-Fattah, who was released from prison after an Egyptian presidential pardon in September, has arrived in Britain, the Egyptian-British campaigner’s family and British Prime Minister Keir Starmer said on Friday.
Abd el-Fattah, 44, has become Egypt’s most prominent political prisoner after spending much of his adult life in and out of detention due to his activism, and a rare symbol of opposition to a far-reaching crackdown under President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi.
The lengthy imprisonment of Abd el-Fattah, who obtained British citizenship through his mother, Laila Soueif, in 2021, and his repeated hunger strikes alongside her prompted widespread international pleas for his release.
She confirmed his return on Facebook: “Praise be to Allah, Alaa reached London safely”.
In a longer statement, his family said he flew to Britain on Friday from Cairo after his travel ban was lifted by Egyptian authorities on December 20. The statement said he would shortly be reunited with his 14-year-old son Khaled, who lives in Brighton in southern England with his mother.
“I’m delighted that Alaa Abd el-Fattah is back in the UK and has been reunited with his loved ones, who must be feeling profound relief,” Starmer said on social media platform X.
“I want to pay tribute to Alaa’s family, and to all those that have worked and campaigned for this moment.”
Despite campaigns calling for Abd el-Fattah’s release, notably during the COP27 climate summit that Egypt hosted in 2022, Sisi pardoned him in September this year, having ordered authorities to study his possible pardon. Abd el-Fattah’s name had been removed from Egypt’s “terrorism” list months earlier.
On Friday, Starmer also thanked the president for his decision to grant the pardon.
(Reporting by Muvija M, Editing by Louise Heavens)
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