A pardon from Egypt's president has ended one of the country's most closely watched cases of political imprisonment. President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi has granted a pardon to Alaa Abd el-Fattah, a high-profile Egyptian-British activist whose repeated detentions and hunger strikes made him a global symbol of opposition to Sisi's government, Reuters reports. The announcement, reported by state media and confirmed by relatives, follows years of advocacy from local and international supporters, as well as personal appeals from Abd el-Fattah's family. Abd el-Fattah, 43, has spent much of his adult life in and out of prison due to his outspoken criticism of Egypt's government.
A former blogger and software developer, he first drew the authorities' attention before the 2011 Arab Spring, and his most prolonged detentions came after Sisi, then a military chief, rose to power. In 2014, Abd el-Fattah was convicted of organizing a protest without a permit, initially receiving a 15-year term that was later reduced. Released in 2019 but kept under parole, he was soon re-arrested over a social media post and sentenced to another five years. He was due to be released last year, but authorities refused to count his time in pre-trial detention as time served and said he would remain in custody until 2027, the BBC reports.
Abd el-Fattah's case drew renewed attention during the 2022 COP27 climate summit in Egypt, prompting intensified calls for his release. His mother, 68-year-old Laila Soueif, herself an activist, met with British Prime Minister Keir Starmer and held a hunger strike to highlight his plight. She was hospitalized in May after losing more than 40% of her body weight. Abd el-Fattah also staged several hunger strikes while in custody. His mother ended her nine-month hunger strike in July after British officials pledged to do all they could to secure her son's release.
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El-Fattah was granted British citizenship through his mother in 2021, but Egypt did not allow British diplomats to visit him. His name was recently removed from Egypt's "terrorism" list, and Sisi's order for authorities to review his case this month led to this week's pardon. "President Sisi has pardoned my brother!" his sister Sanaa Seif said in a post on X. "Mum & I are heading to the prison now to inquire from where Alaa will be released and when... OMG I can't believe we get our lives back!" Mona Seif, his other sister, said, "My heart will explode."
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