On Thursday, Egyptian and international civil society groups demanded the release of prominent activist Alaa Abd el-Fattah.
Abd el-Fattah, a dual Egyptian-British national, was expected to be freed this Sunday after serving five years in detention.
In 2021, Abd el-Fattah was sentenced to five years in prison for spreading false news after posting on social media.
However, his lawyer revealed that authorities may not count his pretrial detention toward his release, delaying it until 2027.
A coalition of 59 civil society groups issued a statement, warning that failure to release him on September 29 would breach Egypt’s legal procedures.
Egyptian authorities have not responded to requests for comment regarding Abd el-Fattah’s release.
His mother, Laila Soueif, expressed hope that her son would be freed, stating that he had been preparing for release.
Abd el-Fattah gained prominence during the 2011 Arab Spring uprising and has spent much of the past decade in prison.
In 2022, he staged a hunger strike during Egypt’s COP27 summit, drawing global attention to his plight.
