The family of jailed Egyptian-British rights activist Alaa Abdel-Fattah, who began refusing all food and water at the start of the COP27 climate conference last weekend, said they received a letter from him proving he was still alive.
at the start of the COP27 climate conference last weekend, said on Monday they received a letter from him proving he was still alive.
Despite his being a British citizen, Abdel-Fattah's lawyers and U.K. government representatives have not been permitted to visit him in prison, prompting fears that he was being force-fed, or that he could even have died in custody. His family had not received their usual correspondence from him since the start of COP27. His lawyer was again denied access to Abdel-Fattah on Monday, the family said.
"They simply won't allow anyone else to see him and see for themselves the clear impact of a long hunger strike on Alaa's body," Mona Seif tweeted. But even with proof that he was still alive as of Saturday, the COP27 summit has now passed its halfway mark, and the family fears time is running out. Egypt's leader announced later, in front of cameras, he had launched a"national strategy for human rights," an initiative for"national dialogue" and a committee for"presidential amnesty" in a potential attempt to defuse attacks from human rights groups, which estimate that some 60,000 political prisoners are currently detained in Egypt.
Australia Latest News, Australia Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
White House ‘doing everything we can’ to get British-Egyptian releasedPresident Biden’s stopover in Egypt included “intensive consultations” on the case of British-Egyptian political prisoner Alaa Abdel Fattah, the White House said.
Read more »
Hunger-striking British Egyptian dissident’s family gets proof of lifeThe family of British Egyptian political prisoner Alaa Abdel Fattah — who started a water strike on Nov. 6 — received proof of life via handwritten letter date Nov. 12, his sister announced Monday.
Read more »
Family says Egyptian hunger-striking activist drinking waterCAIRO (AP) — Egypt’s imprisoned hunger-striking activist Alaa Abdel-Fattah has started drinking water again, his family said Monday, in the first communication from the prominent dissident in over a week amid fears for his life.
Read more »
We May Have Decoded a Sacred Motif in Ancient Egyptian Mummy TattoosEvidence of tattoos found adorning the mummified skins of two women from an ancient town on the bank of the Nile River suggests the lower back has been a trendy tattoo spot for more than 3,000 years.
Read more »
Bus falls into canal in Egypt’s Nile Delta, killing 21The head of police investigations in the province, Brig. Mohamed Abdel Hadi, said the driver may have lost control of the vehicle’s steering wheel.
Read more »