No 10 defends approach to Alaa Abd El-Fattah’s case amid calls for deportation

Downing Street has defended Alaa Abd El-Fattah’s entry into the UK, insisting the Government would welcome the return of any citizen “unfairly detained abroad”.

The activist, who was recently released after years of detention in Egypt, previously wrote tweets which appeared to show him calling for violence against Zionists and the police.

The Conservatives and Reform UK have both suggested he should have his British citizenship stripped for the posts, though it is understood there are no current plans for this and law does not appear to provide grounds to deport him.

He was granted UK citizenship in December 2021 under former Conservative prime minister Boris Johnson, reportedly through his UK-born mother.

Mr Abd El-Fattah has apologised for the social media posts, saying he understood “how shocking and hurtful” his previous comments were.

The Prime Minister’s official spokesman defended the Government’s approach in the case, telling reporters: “We welcome the return of a British citizen unfairly detained abroad, as we would in all cases and as we have done in the past.”

He continued: “That is central to Britain’s commitment to religious and political freedom.

“That said, it doesn’t change the fact that we have condemned the nature of these historic tweets, and we consider them to be abhorrent, and we’ve been very clear about that.”

Sir Keir Starmer was “not aware of the historical tweets” until after the activist entered the UK, Downing Street said.

Asked whether the Government was considering steps to remove Mr Abd El-Fattah’s citizenship, No 10 said: “Clearly, we don’t get into individual citizenship cases.”

Officials within Government appear to believe there are no grounds for removing Mr Abd El-Fattah’s citizenship, as case law has established this can only be done in circumstances of fraud, or against dangerous criminals and terrorists.

The Foreign Office is looking into issues raised by the handling of the case, it is understood.

Mr Abd El-Fattah was imprisoned on charges of spreading false news, in a process branded a breach of international law by UN investigators.

He was pardoned by Egyptian president Abdel Fattah el-Sisi in September following years of lobbying by Conservative and Labour governments, and flew to the UK on Boxing Day.

Since then, the Twitter posts dating back to 2010 have surfaced.

In his statement, Mr Abd El-Fattah said: “I unequivocally apologise.

“(The posts) were mostly expressions of a young man’s anger and frustrations in a time of regional crises (the wars on Iraq, on Lebanon and Gaza), and the rise of police brutality against Egyptian youth.

“I particularly regret some that were written as part of online insult battles with the total disregard for how they read to other people. I should have known better.”

Downing Street appeared content with Mr Abd El-Fattah’s apology, and the Prime Minister’s official spokesman described it as “fairly fulsome”.

He continued: “That’s clearly the right thing to do.”

But Conservative shadow home secretary Chris Philp labelled his statement an “insincere apology”, as he called for Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood to strip Mr Abd El-Fattah of his citizenship.

Reform UK, which also called for Mr Abd El-Fattah’s deportation, criticised the Conservatives for not having scrutinised his past social media more when they started diplomatic efforts to bring him to the UK.

A Reform spokesman said: “Alaa Abd El-Fattah was granted British citizenship in 2021 by Boris Johnson’s government. Liz Truss and James Cleverly both personally intervened on his case.

“Kemi Badenoch was minister of state for local government, faith and communities when Alaa Abd El-Fattah was granted citizenship.”

They added: “The Conservatives cannot be trusted.”

John McDonnell, Labour MP for Hayes and Harlington, raised Mr Abd El-Fattah’s case in Parliament several times during his imprisonment.

In a statement sent to the Press Association, he suggested the activist had been on a “political journey” since he was a “furious young man”.

He added: “His appalling social media interventions were the product of that anger and had been exposed over a decade ago.

“But that’s the point – Alaa’s journey was from someone who could send these vile tweets to becoming an advocate for dignity, respect and human rights for all, a defender of the oppressed and persecuted no matter what their religion, gender or sexuality.”

A collection of Mr Abd El-Fattah’s writings was published in his 2021 book, You Have Not Yet Been Defeated.