The International Bar Association’s Human Rights Institute (IBAHRI) welcomes news that British Egyptian writer Alaa Abd el-Fattah has been pardoned and released by Egyptian president Abdel Fattah el-Sisi after his latest arbitrary detention of almost six years.

Mr Abd el-Fattah was sentenced to 15 years in prison in 2014 for peacefully protesting. In 2019, he was released on parole but was re-arrested later that year and given a five-year prison sentence. In 2024, he completed his initial prison sentence of five years but remained unreleased as the authorities refused to count his period of pre-trial detention, contrary to Egyptian law. His sentence was for ‘spreading false news’, after he shared a Facebook post about torture in Egyptian protests. Both detentions were found by the United Nations Working Group on Arbitrary Detention to be unlawful on the basis of his lawful exercise of his freedom of expression, fair trial violations, and the discriminatory nature of his detention based on his political views. 

The IBAHRI supported the campaign for Mr Abd el-Fattah’s release led by his family, including his mother, Laila Soueif, who underwent a hunger strike of 287 days, his sister Sanaa Seif, and other family members. His release comes after their campaign, and the work of organisations such as FairSquare, Reporters Without Borders, English PEN, and the Committee to Protect Journalists, as well as his legal team in Egypt, Khaled Ali, and internationally, Can Yeginsu and his team at 3VB Chambers. The Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office had also been working to secure the release of Mr Abd el-Fattah, as  a British citizen. Following his pardoning and release, the IBAHRI hopes to see Mr Abd el-Fattah being able to return freely to the UK, where his son lives. 

The IBAHRI notes that many other journalists, lawyers, and human rights defenders remain in prison in Egypt, and calls for their unconditional and immediate release. 

ENDS

Contact: IBAHRI@int-bar.org

Notes to the reader

1. Related material:

   • IBAHRI joint letter to the UK Foreign Secretary regarding Mr Abd el-Fattah (January 2025)

   • Baroness Kennedy stands in solidarity with Ms Soueif outside Downing Street in London (February 2025)

   • IBAHRI renews call for efforts to counter escalating attacks on journalists (May 2025)

   • IBAHRI joint letter to the UK Prime Minister expressing concern for Mr Abd el-Fattah (May 2025)

   • Baroness Kennedy opinion piece for The Guardian newspaper calling for the imposition of sanctions to ensure Mr Abd el-Fattah’s freedom (June 2025)

2. The International Bar Association’s Human Rights Institute (IBAHRI), established in 1995 under Founding Honorary President Nelson Mandela, is an autonomous entity working to promote, protect and enforce human rights under a just rule of law, and to preserve the independence of the judiciary and the legal profession worldwide.
3. Find the IBAHRI on social media here:
   • x.com/IBAHRI
   • https://bsky.app/profile/ibahri.bsky.social
   • www.facebook.com/IBAhumanrights
   • www.linkedin.com/in/iba-human-rights-institute/
4. The International Bar Association (IBA), the global voice of the legal profession, is the foremost organisation for international legal practitioners, bar associations and law societies. Established in 1947, shortly after the creation of the United Nations, with the aim of protecting and promoting the rule of law globally, the IBA was born out of the conviction that an organisation made up of the world's bar associations could contribute to global stability and peace through the administration of justice.

Website page link for this news release:
Short link: tinyurl.com/267ek25n
Full link: www.ibanet.org/Egypt-IBAHRI-welcomes-release-of-British-Egyptian-writer-Alaa-Abd-el-Fattah