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Egyptian President Abdul Fattah al-Sisi has granted a pardon to the well-known British-Egyptian activist Alaa Abdel Fattah, who has been in prison for six years, as reported by state media and his family. Al-Qahera News disclosed that Abdel Fattah was among six individuals whose sentences were reduced following a request from the National Council for Human Rights. Reacting to the news, his sister Mona Seif expressed her overwhelming emotions, stating, “My heart will explode.”
A renowned blogger and advocate for democracy at the age of 43, Abdel Fattah is recognized as one of Egypt’s most prominent political detainees. He was apprehended in 2019 during a government crackdown on dissent and was sentenced in 2021 to five years behind bars for sharing false information after reposting about a prisoner’s death from torture. His family revealed that he was supposed to be released in September 2024, but Egyptian officials neglected to consider the two years he spent in pre-trial detention as time served.
Abdel Fattah’s attorney, Khaled Ali, verified through a Facebook post that his client had been pardoned and would be freed from Wadi al-Natrun prison, situated northwest of Cairo, once the pardon was officially announced. Confirming the news, Abdel Fattah’s other sister Sanaa Seif joyfully exclaimed, “President Sisi has pardoned my brother!” She further expressed her disbelief and eagerness to reclaim their lives. The National Council for Human Rights commended the pardons as a step towards reinforcing the values of swift justice and maintaining essential rights and freedoms.
The advocacy group Human Rights Watch expressed hope that Alaa Abdel Fattah’s pardon would serve as a turning point and a chance for President Sisi’s government to put an end to the unjust imprisonment of numerous peaceful critics. Sisi recently instructed authorities to review the NCHR’s petitions for the release of Abdel Fattah and six others, presented due to the families’ humanitarian and health challenges. Joining her son in the quest for justice, Abdel Fattah’s 68-year-old mother, Leila Soueif, concluded her nine-month-long hunger strike in July after receiving assurances from the UK government regarding efforts to secure his release
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