Dame Emily Thornberry has sharply criticized the government's handling of activist Alaa Abd El-Fattah's case, calling the failures "embarrassing" and preventable. The chairwoman of Parliament's Foreign Affairs Committee pointed to "serious shortcomings" in information sharing that emerged after controversial tweets from 2010 resurfaced following his return to the UK on Boxing Day.
The criticism centers on the government's failure to appoint a special envoy for complex detention cases, a commitment made by then-foreign secretary David Lammy last year. Thornberry argues such an official would have caught Abd El-Fattah's problematic social media history before it became public.
In a letter to Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper, Thornberry acknowledged the distress caused to Jewish communities, particularly amid rising antisemitism. She wrote: «Had an envoy been established following the then-foreign secretary's commitment in 2024, with access the necessary FCDO (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) resources including staffing, it is clear to me that such embarrassing failures of due diligence and information sharing would have been avoided.»
The envoy proposal
Thornberry emphasized the envoy's role would extend beyond social media checks. «More broadly, the envoy would demonstrate that the arbitrary detention of Brits will never be tolerated, increase the confidence of families of those detained, separate the responsibility from individual embassies, and create opportunities for a whole-of-government approach to these complex cases», she stated in the letter.
She reiterated her committee's recommendation for immediate appointment of such a position.
The Abd El-Fattah controversy
Abd El-Fattah, granted UK citizenship in December 2021 under former Conservative Prime Minister Boris Johnson, was imprisoned in Egypt on charges of spreading false news. UN investigators branded his detention a breach of international law. Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah el-Sisi pardoned him in September after lobbying efforts.
Following his return to the UK after his travel ban was lifted, tweets from 2010 emerged in which he appeared to advocate violence against Zionists and police. He has since apologized for the posts.
Downing Street described the old posts as "abhorrent" but called his apology "fairly fulsome". Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer welcomed Abd El-Fattah's return to the UK, where he was reunited with his son in Brighton.
Conservatives and Reform UK have suggested stripping Abd El-Fattah of his British citizenship. The government currently has no such plans, and the law does not appear to provide grounds for deportation.
Note: This article was created with Artificial Intelligence (AI).
