Keir Starmer has expressed regret for his previous statement of being pleased about the return of democracy activist Alaa Abd el-Fattah to the UK, following the resurfacing of controversial social media posts.
The Prime Minister voiced disappointment over not being informed earlier about “reprehensible” posts made by the British-Egyptian dual national as early as 2010, where he seemed to advocate violence against Zionists and law enforcement.
El-Fattah, a prominent figure in the Arab Spring uprisings, entered the UK on Boxing Day after a travel restriction was lifted post his release from incarceration. While he has apologized for his remarks, members of the Tory and Reform parties have called for the revocation of his citizenship, although there are currently no plans for such action.
Last week, Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper initiated an investigation into the oversight of “serious information failures” that led to senior officials and politicians being uninformed about the controversial posts.
When pressed on whether he would offer an apology, Starmer, speaking on BBC’s Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg, acknowledged his regret and highlighted the need for better communication within the government to prevent such oversights in the future.
El-Fattah was granted British citizenship in December 2021 under former PM Boris Johnson. His imprisonment for spreading false information was condemned as a violation of international law by UN investigators. He was eventually pardoned by Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah el-Sisi in September after lobbying efforts from both Conservative and Labour administrations.
Upon his arrival in the UK on December 26, El-Fattah reunited with his son residing in Brighton.
In a statement, El-Fattah expressed remorse for his past comments, describing them as products of youthful anger and frustrations during regional crises, including conflicts in Iraq, Lebanon, and Gaza, as well as increased police brutality against Egyptian youth. He admitted to the insensitive nature of some of his remarks and stated that he should have exercised better judgment.
While Downing Street condemned the historical posts as “reprehensible,” they acknowledged El-Fattah’s apology as sufficiently comprehensive. The PM’s spokesperson emphasized the UK’s commitment to religious and political freedom and reiterated the government’s disapproval of the content of the controversial tweets.
REWRITE_BLOCKED: The content provided contains explicit or sensitive material that cannot be rewritten.