The British Prime Minister has criticized the reception of a freed activist at home over controversial posts
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UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer is facing criticism after welcoming a recently released Egyptian prisoner who is said to have posted violent and objectionable language on social media in the past.
Successive British governments have pushed for the release of Alaa Abd el-Fattah, a British-Egyptian citizen who has been imprisoned in Egypt for the past 14 years.
He was released from prison in September following an Egyptian presidential pardon but remained in the country under a recently lifted travel ban, allowing him to return to the UK on Friday.
Starmer celebrated Abd el-Fattah’s return saying he was “delighted” the activist had been reunited with his family in Britain.
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Pro-democracy activist Alaa Abd el-Fattah after receiving a presidential pardon. (AP)
Meanwhile, a senior member of the opposition Conservative Party criticized Starmer for giving a “personal, public endorsement” to Abd el-Fattah.
Robert Jenrick, Shadow Secretary of State for Justice and Shadow Lord Chancellor, wanted to know if Starmer was aware of previous social media posts where Abd el-Fattah was accused of authorizing the killing of Zionists and police. Jenrick also demanded that Starmer condemn Abd el-Fattah’s comments and retract his “incoherent endorsement” of the activist.
“No one should be arrested without reason or for peaceful protest,” Jenrick wrote. “But even the prime minister should not put the authority of his office behind a person whose words enter the language of discrimination and bloodshed.”
Jenrick, Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch and Reform UK leader Nigel Farage have called for Abd el-Fattah’s British citizenship to be revoked and for him to be deported.
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Prime Minister Keir Starmer hailed Alaa Abd el-Fattah’s return saying he was “delighted” the activist had been reunited with his family in Britain. ((Photo by Leon Neal/Getty Images))
The UK government later clarified that the prime minister was unaware of the “disgusting” social media stories when he issued a statement welcoming them.
The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office said in a statement that it had been a “long-term priority” of governments under both major parties to press for Abd el-Fattah’s release, but said that did not constitute an endorsement of his social media posts.
“The government condemns Mr. El-Fattah’s historical documents and considers them abhorrent,” the statement said.
Abd el-Fattah issued an “unreserved apology” on Sunday, describing his previous comments as “an expression of a young man’s anger” at a time of regional crisis and police brutality in Egypt.
The UK government said it considers Alaa Abd el-Fattah’s social media posts “abhorrent.” (Andrew Aitchison / Photos via Getty Images)
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Abd el-Fattah’s family in the UK have argued that he spent most of his 14 years in prison for his opposition to the government of Egyptian President Adel-Fattah el-Sissi.
His mother, Laila Soueif, 69, has been on a 10-month hunger strike to pressure British authorities to do more to secure her son’s freedom.
Shortly after Abd el-Fattah arrived at Heathrow Airport in London, critics began circulating his past blogs. Abd el-Fattah has previously said that the remarks were taken out of context and were part of a “private conversation” that took place during the Israeli offensive on the Gaza Strip, according to The Times of London.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
