Foreign Office probes dealing with of Egyptian activist case amid calls to deport him | EUROtoday

The Foreign Office is wanting into the dealing with of the case of a democracy activist who lately arrived within the UK after years of imprisonment in Egypt, after the emergence of a number of historic tweets and rising requires him to be deported.

Alaa Abd El-Fattah on Sunday night time issued an “unequivocal” apology for a number of historic tweets, a few of which seem to advocate violence in opposition to Zionists. But hemaintained that different posts have been “completely twisted out of their meaning”.

The controversy has led figures corresponding to Conservative chief Kemi Badenoch and Reform UK chief Nigel Farage to demand an investigation into revoking the activist’s British citizenship.

Downing Street believes that there are inquiries to be answered over the dealing with of the case and it’s understood the FCDO is now analyzing the problem.

But the activist is unlikely to be stripped of citizenship as a result of No 10 doesn’t consider his actions meet the excessive authorized bar for deportation.

Mr Abd El-Fattah, who was detained in Egypt in September 2019 and sentenced to 5 years in jail in December 2021 for allegedly spreading false information, was pardoned by Egyptian president Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi in September.

His launch, which adopted intensive lobbying by each Conservative and Labour governments, noticed him fly to the UK on Boxing Day to be reunited together with his son in Brighton.

Since his arrival, posts relationship again to 2010 have resurfaced, showing to name for violence in opposition to Zionists and the police.

On Monday, Downing Street defended his entry into the UK, saying the federal government would welcome the return of any citizen “unfairly detained abroad”.

The prime minister’s official spokesman mentioned: “We welcome the return of a British citizen unfairly detained abroad, as we would in all cases and as we have done in the past.”

He continued: “That is central to Britain’s commitment to religious and political freedom.

“That said, it doesn’t change the fact that we have condemned the nature of these historic tweets, and we consider them to be abhorrent, and we’ve been very clear about that.”

No 10 additionally mentioned his resolution to apologise was “the right thing to do”, describing the apology as “fairly fulsome”.

In an announcement issued on Monday, Mr Abd El-Fattah mentioned: “I am shaken that, just as I am being reunited with my family for the first time in 12 years, several historic tweets of mine have been republished and used to question and attack my integrity and values, escalating to calls for the revocation of my citizenship.”

He added: “Looking at the tweets now – the ones that were not completely twisted out of their meaning – I do understand how shocking and hurtful they are, and for that I unequivocally apologise.”

He attributed these posts to “a young man’s anger and frustrations in a time of regional crises (the wars on Iraq, on Lebanon and Gaza), and the rise of police brutality against Egyptian youth”, additionally regretting these written throughout “online insult battles”.

Following the discharge of the assertion, shadow house secretary Chris Philp branded Mr Abd El-Fattah a “scumbag”, including he was “not really interested” in his apology.

The Conservative MP informed ITV’s Good Morning Britain: “What he said was absolutely disgusting … If I was the actual home secretary, I would today be signing an order to revoke his citizenship under the 1971 Immigration Act on the grounds he’s not conducive to the public good and making sure he gets deported, because people who spew this kind of hatred have no place in this country, and the fact he’s issued an apology now that he’s been essentially exposed I think makes no difference whatsoever.”

The shadow house secretary’s feedback come after Ms Badenoch argued it was “inconceivable” that the activist’s previous statements went unnoticed.

Writing within the Daily Mailshe said: “I do not want people who hate Britain coming to our country.”

Mr Abd El-Fattah, who was granted UK citizenship in December 2021 underneath Boris Johnson, reportedly by way of his UK-born mom, insisted he takes allegations of antisemitism “very seriously”.

He claimed some tweets had been “misunderstood, seemingly in bad faith”, citing examples the place a tweet interpreted as homophobic was “actually ridiculing homophobia”, and one other wrongly suggesting Holocaust denial was “clearly mocking Holocaust denial”.

He highlighted his previous assist for LGBT+ rights and non secular minorities in Egypt.

The Foreign Office, in an announcement on Sunday, affirmed Mr Abd El-Fattah’s British citizenship, noting that securing his launch had been a “longstanding priority under successive governments”.

However, it added: “The government condemns Mr Abd El-Fattah’s historic tweets and considers them to be abhorrent.”

It is known Sir Keir was unaware of the social media posts when he expressed delight on the activist’s return.

Concerns have additionally been raised by Jewish group organisations. The Board of Deputies of British Jews said they’d contacted the federal government, stressing an “urgent need” to establish whether or not Mr Abd El-Fattah nonetheless holds the views expressed on-line.

The Jewish Leadership Council voiced worries in regards to the security of Jewish communities, referencing current antisemitic assaults in Manchester and at Australia’s Bondi Beach.

“We know from Heaton Park, Manchester, and Bondi Beach that there are those who hear such words as a call to action,” the organisation posted on X (Twitter), including: “The government has celebrated Mr Abd El-Fattah’s arrival as a victory, British Jews will see it as yet another reminder of the danger we face.”

This shouldn’t be the primary time Mr Abd El-Fattah’s tweets have prompted controversy. In 2014, his nomination for the European Parliament’s Sakharov Prize was withdrawn after a 2012 tweet about Israel.

Despite the backlash, Mr Abd El-Fattah expressed gratitude for the “huge empathy and solidarity” he obtained.

“It has been painful to see some people who supported calls for my release now feel regret for doing so,” he mentioned.

“Whatever they feel now, they did the right thing. Standing up for human rights and a citizen unjustly imprisoned is something honourable, and I will always be grateful for that solidarity.”