Government 'could have avoided embarrassing failures' in El Fattah case, Emily Thornberry says
Former foreign secretary David Lammy said last year that the Government would be introducing an envoy to deal with “complex detention cases” involving Britons abroad
“Embarrassing” failures in the case of Alaa Abd El-Fattah would have been avoided if the Government had acted on its commitments to appoint a special envoy, Dame Emily Thornberry has said.
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The chairwoman of Parliament’s Foreign Affairs Committee criticised “serious shortcomings” in information sharing which she said could have been prevented by a dedicated official to carry out background checks.
Former foreign secretary David Lammy said last year that the Government would be introducing an envoy to deal with “complex detention cases” involving Britons abroad, but no such figure has yet been appointed.
Prime Minister Keir Starmer faced criticism after celebrating activist Alaa Abd El-Fattah return to the UK on Boxing Day after posts emerged in which the activist appears to call for violence towards Zionists and the police.
The posts, which date back to 2010, appear to be from Mr Abd El-Fattah’s X account - but could not be verified independently.
Mr Abd El-Fattah, a British-Egyptian dual national, was detained in Egypt in September 2019, and in December 2021 was sentenced to five years in prison on charges of spreading false news.
His imprisonment was branded a breach of international law by UN investigators, and Mr Abd El-Fattah was released after being pardoned by Egyptian president Abdel-Fattah el-Sisi.
“The Government condemns Mr El-Fattah’s historic tweets and considers them to be abhorrent,” the Foreign Office said on Sunday.
In a letter to Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper, Dame Emily said: “Thank you for your letter and for updating me on the troubling failures in due diligence and information sharing in relation to the case of Alaa Abd El Fattah.
“Your recognition of the distress caused to Jewish communities, particularly in the context of rising antisemitism in the UK and internationally, is necessary and welcome.”
She added: “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.
“It would have been firmly within the envoy’s remit to carry out appropriate background and 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.
“May I take this opportunity, therefore, to reiterate my committee’s recommendation that such an envoy be appointed as soon as possible.”