The Foreign Committee Chair has slammed Labour for “embarrassing failures” over “serious shortcomings” in the case of an Egyptian extremist.
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, according to Dame Emily Thornberry.
The Chairwoman of Parliament’s Foreign Affairs Committee criticised for “serious shortcomings” in information sharing.
Dame Emily, who served as Shadow Foreign Secretary under former Labour Leader Jeremy Corbyn, said mistakes 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. However, no such figure has yet been appointed.
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.
“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.”
Alaa Abdel Fattah
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GETTYShe continued: “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.”
Mr Abd El-Fattah was granted UK citizenship in December 2021 under former Conservative prime minister Boris Johnson, reportedly through his British-born mother.
Dame Emily Thornberry has responded to the Foreign Secretary
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His imprisonment for charges of spreading false news was branded a breach of international law by UN investigators.
The activist was pardoned by Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah el-Sisi in September after years of lobbying by Conservative and Labour governments.
He flew to the UK on Boxing Day and was reunited with his son, who lives in Brighton, after a travel ban was lifted.
Politicians including Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer welcomed his return before the resurfacing of tweets dating back to 2010 in which the activist appeared to call for violence against Zionists and the police.
The full letter sent by Dame Emily to Ms Cooper
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David Lammy with Mr Abd El-Fattah’s sisters Mona and Sanaa Seif
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GETTYDowning Street has since described the posts as “abhorrent” but said an apology issued by Mr El-Fattah earlier this week was “fairly fulsome.”
The Conservatives and Reform UK have both suggested he should have his British citizenship stripped for the posts.
However, it is understood there are no current plans for this and the law does not appear to provide grounds to deport him.