AFTE condemns the Egyptian authorities’ refusal to release Alaa Abdel Fattah after serving his sentence and calls for his immediate release

Date : Sunday, 29 September, 2024
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September 29, 2024

 

The Association for Freedom of Thought and Expression condemns the Egyptian authorities’ refusal to release activist Alaa Abdel Fattah, despite the completion of his five-year sentence, which was set to end today, and calls on the Egyptian authorities to release him immediately and to cease the ongoing persecution due to his critical views.

 

Alaa Abdel Fattah was arrested on September 28, 2019, and sentenced to five years in prison for allegedly spreading “false news” after reposting a Facebook post accusing a police officer of torture. Despite serving his full sentence, the Egyptian authorities continue to detain him, an act that constitutes a blatant violation of the law. According to his lawyer, Khaled Ali, Alaa Abdel Fattah has not been summoned for any investigation session since the 2021 ruling and has not faced any additional charges.

 

The Egyptian authorities did not count the two years Alaa Abdel Fattah spent in pre-trial detention as part of his sentence. Instead, they counted his prison time starting from the date of his sentence confirmation in 2021, which means that his release is now set for January 2027. The foundation views this handling of Alaa Abdel Fattah’s legal situation as part of the many violations he has suffered over the years.

 

This incident comes at a time of increasing concern over the continued security practices of targeting and arresting citizens for expressing their opinions, as well as the ongoing detention of thousands of citizens in pre-trial detention for years as punishment for their critical views.

 

AFTE renews its call on the Egyptian authorities to stop persecuting Alaa Abdel Fattah and release him immediately.

 

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