Starmer playing Russian roulette with jailed Briton's life, family claims

Sir Keir Starmer has been accused of playing 'Russian roulette' with the lives of a British citizen illegally detained in Egypt and his mother.
Laila Soueif, 69, began refusing food in September after her son, Alaa Abd El-Fattah, remained imprisoned in Cairo despite completing a jail sentence. Doctors now warn she is on the brink of death.
'It feels like the Government is playing Russian roulette with my mother and brother's life,' said his sister Mona, speaking to The Telegraph from a café opposite St Thomas' Hospital in Westminster, where Ms Soueif is being treated.
Her sister Sanaa, speaking from Cairo, said both the Prime Minister and Abdel Fattah El-Sisi, Egypt's president, would have 'blood on their hands' if her mother died before her brother was freed. ' We're not even asking Egypt for a favour, he's a British citizen. Does his passport mean nothing?' she added.
Mr El-Fattah, a British citizen who is also on hunger strike, was jailed in 2019 for sharing a Facebook post about the death of an inmate. A UN panel has found his continued imprisonment to be illegal and arbitrary.
Sanaa said her brother was 'really anxious' about their mother's condition and described him as a 'hostage'. 'He's being used as a negotiating card by both governments. He's finished his sentence, Egypt is not even giving any legal argument to keep him.'
The Foreign Office insists it is 'committed to securing Alaa Abd El-Fattah's release', and said David Lammy, the Foreign Secretary, raised the case again last week. However, Sir Keir is seemingly unable to convince Mr El-Sisi, who has reportedly ignored his calls since May 22.
Mona said: 'If you ask me personally, David Lammy on his own, Keir Starmer on his own, are both invested in the wellbeing of my family. But has this transferred into action? No. It hasn't led to any tangible change in Alaa's condition in prison.'
She accused the Foreign Office of working 'against' families. 'The way the Foreign Office works – especially under this Labour Government – it doesn't feel like it is working with you.'
Speaking from her hospital bed, Ms Soueif urged the Prime Minister to act fast: 'Mr Starmer, both Alaa and I are now in danger. Please get a result and get it quickly. We do not have weeks any more, we are lucky to have days.'
Mr El-Fattah, a prominent writer and activist, had served previous time in prison before being re-arrested in 2019 and sentenced to three years in 2021.
Shortly after his arrest in 2019, he was transferred to Egypt's notorious Tora maximum security prison, where he was blindfolded, stripped of his clothing, and beaten, according to Amnesty International.
One police officer allegedly told him that prison was 'made for people like you' and that he would be there for the rest of his life.
Sanaa, who visited her brother twice on her visit to Cairo, said her brother had received better treatment where he is currently being held, the Wadi el-Natrun Prison, a massive jail complex north of the Egyptian capital.
'I saw him behind a glass shield, he's lost a lot of weight. He looked weaker but at least he says he feels OK. The doctors are testing his blood sugars,' she explained.
Mr El-Fattah's sentence expired in September 2024 – which was when Ms Soueif began her hunger strike.
For months, she survived on black tea, black coffee and rehydration salts. In February, she began taking 300 liquid calories a day after Sir Keir personally called on Egypt to release her son. She resumed her hunger strike on May 20 and was readmitted to hospital days later.
Doctors say she has refused glucose treatment, and her blood sugar dropped so low last week it was undetectable. 'I don't think any of us thought she could continue this far,' said Mona. 'This is why I feel extra angry with both governments.'
Fiona O'Brien, UK director of Reporters Without Borders (RSF), said the Government had multiple levers it could use to pressure Egypt into action, such as changing travel advice.
'British tourists should know they could be arrested for sharing something online in Egypt, and that they won't get any consular visits.'
She urged ministers to consider sanctions or to refer Egypt to the International Court of Justice. 'Alaa is absolutely a hostage now… the world is watching to see what Britain is going to do,' she said.
A Government spokesman said: 'We are committed to securing Alaa Abd El-Fattah's release. The Prime Minister and the Foreign Secretary have stressed the urgency of the situation in calls with their counterparts recently and further engagement at the highest levels of the Egyptian government continues.
'We are deeply concerned by Laila's hospitalisation. We remain in regular contact with Laila's family and have checked on her welfare.'

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Learn with AIFact CheckingText to SpeechAI Summary

Related Articles

Leader Live

32 minutes ago

• Leader Live

Middle East situation ‘perilous', says Lammy amid calls for more talks

David Lammy flew from Washington to Geneva on Friday to meet Iranian foreign minister Abbas Araghchi alongside his French and German counterparts as the UK continued to press for a diplomatic solution to the Middle East crisis. The talks followed US President Donald Trump's announcement that he would delay a decision on joining Israeli strikes against Iran for up to two weeks. Speaking after the meeting, Mr Lammy told reporters: 'It is still clear to me, as President Trump indicated yesterday, that there is a window of within two weeks where we can see a diplomatic solution.' Urging Iran to 'take that off ramp' and talk to the Americans, he said: 'We have a window of time. This is perilous and deadly serious.' He added that the US and Europe were pushing for Iran to agree to zero enrichment of uranium as a 'starting point' for negotiations. But Mr Araghchi said Iran would not negotiate with the US as long as Israel continued to carry out airstrikes against the country, and insisted his country's nuclear programme was entirely peaceful. Both sides continued to exchange fire on Friday, with Iranian missiles targeting the city of Haifa while Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Tel Aviv's military operation would continue 'for as long as it takes'. Meanwhile, the UK Government has announced it will use charter flights to evacuate Britons stranded in Israel once the country's airspace reopens. Mr Lammy said work is under way to provide the flights 'based on levels of demand' from UK citizens who want to leave the region. The move follows criticism of the Foreign Office's initial response, which saw family members of embassy staff evacuated while UK citizens were not advised to leave and told to follow local guidance. The Government said the move to withdraw temporarily family members had been a 'precautionary measure'. On Friday, the Foreign Office announced that UK staff had also been evacuated from Iran, with the embassy continuing to operate remotely. But the Government continues to advise British nationals in the region to follow local advice, rather than urging them to leave.

North Wales Chronicle

an hour ago

• North Wales Chronicle

Middle East situation ‘perilous', says Lammy amid calls for more talks

David Lammy flew from Washington to Geneva on Friday to meet Iranian foreign minister Abbas Araghchi alongside his French and German counterparts as the UK continued to press for a diplomatic solution to the Middle East crisis. The talks followed US President Donald Trump's announcement that he would delay a decision on joining Israeli strikes against Iran for up to two weeks. Speaking after the meeting, Mr Lammy told reporters: 'It is still clear to me, as President Trump indicated yesterday, that there is a window of within two weeks where we can see a diplomatic solution.' Urging Iran to 'take that off ramp' and talk to the Americans, he said: 'We have a window of time. This is perilous and deadly serious.' He added that the US and Europe were pushing for Iran to agree to zero enrichment of uranium as a 'starting point' for negotiations. But Mr Araghchi said Iran would not negotiate with the US as long as Israel continued to carry out airstrikes against the country, and insisted his country's nuclear programme was entirely peaceful. Both sides continued to exchange fire on Friday, with Iranian missiles targeting the city of Haifa while Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Tel Aviv's military operation would continue 'for as long as it takes'. Meanwhile, the UK Government has announced it will use charter flights to evacuate Britons stranded in Israel once the country's airspace reopens. Mr Lammy said work is under way to provide the flights 'based on levels of demand' from UK citizens who want to leave the region. The move follows criticism of the Foreign Office's initial response, which saw family members of embassy staff evacuated while UK citizens were not advised to leave and told to follow local guidance. The Government said the move to withdraw temporarily family members had been a 'precautionary measure'. On Friday, the Foreign Office announced that UK staff had also been evacuated from Iran, with the embassy continuing to operate remotely. But the Government continues to advise British nationals in the region to follow local advice, rather than urging them to leave.

The Independent

an hour ago

• The Independent

Palestine Action to be banned after vandalism of planes at RAF base

The Home Secretary is preparing to ban Palestine Action following the group's vandalism of two planes at an RAF base. Yvette Cooper has decided to proscribe the group, making it a criminal offence to belong to or support Palestine Action. The decision comes after the group posted footage online showing two people inside the base at RAF Brize Norton in Oxfordshire. The clip shows one person riding an electric scooter up to an Airbus Voyager air-to-air refuelling tanker and appearing to spray paint into its jet engine. The incident is being also investigated by counter terror police. A spokesperson for Palestine Action accused the UK of failing to meet its obligation to prevent or punish genocide. The spokesperson said: 'When our government fails to uphold their moral and legal obligations, it is the responsibility of ordinary citizens to take direct action. The terrorists are the ones committing a genocide, not those who break the tools used to commit it.' The Home Secretary has the power to proscribe an organisation under the Terrorism Act of 2000 if she believes it is 'concerned in terrorism'. Proscription will require Ms Cooper to lay an order in Parliament, which must then be debated and approved by both MPs and peers. Some 81 organisations have been proscribed under the 2000 Act, including Islamist terrorist groups such as Hamas and al Qaida, far-right groups such as National Action, and Russian private military company Wagner Group. Another 14 organisations connected with Northern Ireland are also banned under previous legislation, including the IRA and UDA. Belonging to or expressing support for a proscribed organisation, along with a number of other actions, are criminal offences carrying a maximum sentence of 14 years in prison. Friday's incident at Brize Norton, described by the Prime Minister as 'disgraceful', prompted calls for Palestine Action to be banned. The group has staged a series of demonstrations in recent months, including spraying the London offices of Allianz Insurance with red paint over its alleged links to Israeli defence company Elbit, and vandalising Donald Trump's Turnberry golf course in South Ayrshire. The Campaign Against Antisemitism (CAA) welcomed the news that Ms Cooper intended to proscribe the group, saying: 'Nobody should be surprised that those who vandalised Jewish premises with impunity have now been emboldened to sabotage RAF jets.' CAA chief executive Gideon Falter urged the Home Secretary to proscribe the Houthi rebel group and Iran's Revolutionary Guard Corps, adding: 'This country needs to clamp down on the domestic and foreign terrorists running amok on our soil.' Former home secretary Suella Braverman said it was 'absolutely the correct decision'. But Tom Southerden, of Amnesty International UK, said the human rights organisation was 'deeply concerned at the use of counter terrorism powers to target protest groups'. Mr Southerden said: 'Terrorism powers should never have been used to aggravate criminal charges against Palestine Action activists and they certainly shouldn't be used to ban them. 'Instead of suppressing protest against the UK's military support for Israel, the UK should be taking urgent action to prevent Israel's genocide and end any risk of UK complicity in it.'