The family of British-Egyptian prisoner Alaa Abd El-Fatteh has urged Rishi Sunak not to return from Cop27 without a British official providing “proof of life,” as the activist enters the second day of his water strike which risks his survival.
The activist’s aunt Ahdaf Soueif said the family fears the British government will be “fobbed off” by Egypt following confirmation Rishi Sunak had raised the case with president Abdel Fattah El-Sisi.
The family have primarily urged for Mr El-Fatteh’s release but have also called for him to be allowed consular visits while in prison.
His aunt said he has not seen his lawyers or representatives from any human rights organisation since December.
“Rishi Sunak should not come back without some British official having actually seen him and spoken to him and given us proof of life and consciousness and what happens next,” Ms Soueif told BBC’s Today Programme.
“We fear the British are allowing themselves to be fobbed off with the excuses the Egyptian government has been using since last December.
“If they leave without this happening, this will give the Egyptian government a sense of impunity, and there are 60,000 other political prisoners in Egypt now.”
The 40-year-old writer and activist is on a hunger strike in a Cairo prison and is in his second day of refusing to drink water - a move which will drastically reduce his chance of survival.
His aunt added that a family member had gone to the prison for a regular Monday trip where Mr El-Fatteh would be given fresh laundry and also provide a letter sharing updates on his welfare.
Ms Sheif said the family member waited for 10 hours before being told Mr El-Fatteh would not be giving a letter, increasing fears that the activist’s condition may have deteriorated following the start of his water strike.
“He would have known that we were waiting to hear how he was doing so something has blocked him being able to communicate with us yesterday,” Ms Sheif said.
She added: “We are very worried. My sister made a video saying he should be in hospital and not the medical supervision of the prison who have falsified a report about his health in the past and they have never acknowledged he’s on hunger strike even though he lost half his weight.
“The prime minister said he hoped to see this resolved as soon as possible and would continue to press for progress,” Downing Street said.
Mr Sunak told broadcasters the case was one “not just the United Kingdom but many countries want to see resolved”.
Mr Sunak had written to Mr Abd El-Fattah's family saying he was “totally committed” to resolving the case, which he described as “a priority for the British government both as a human rights defender and as a British national”.
French president Emmanuel Macron, also at Cop27, said president al-Sisi was “committed” to ensuring that Alaa Abdel-Fattah’s health “is preserved” and hoped that “the next few weeks and months will bring results”.
Egypt's foreign minister Sameh Shoukry, Cop27 president-designate, assured CNBC that Alaa Abdel-Fattah “is receiving all the necessary care in prison”.
All these claims are rejected by those close to Abdel-Fattah, including his sister Sanaa Seif, who is present in Sharm el-Sheikh where she has been meeting with officials and giving interviews.
Mr Abdel-Fattah is an outspoken dissident and a British citizen who rose to prominence with the 2011 pro-democracy uprisings that swept the Middle East and in Egypt toppled long-time president Hosni Mubarak.
He spent most of the past decade behind bars and his detention has become a symbol of Egypt’s return to autocratic rule.
He also has a seven-year-old son he has been unable to see for a year, and is currently serving his latest five-year sentence – which the peers and MPs labelled “unlawful” in a letter sent to foreign secretary James Cleverly this week.
