Laila Soueif, mother of imprisoned activist Alaa Abdel Fattah, has entered her 54th day of a hunger strike, pressing the UK government to secure her son’s release.
The 68-year-old rights advocate began her strike after Abdel Fattah, 43, was not freed upon completing a five-year sentence in September. Convicted in 2021 for “spreading false news” on Egypt’s prison system, he had been detained since 2019.
“I don’t see a future where he’s free,” Soueif said during an interview in London. Her son, a British-Egyptian citizen and prominent figure in Egypt’s 2011 uprising, remains imprisoned under conditions his family calls unjust.
Monthly prison visits allow Soueif just 20 minutes to speak with her son through a screen, a process she describes as deeply disheartening. “He’s hopeless. He doesn’t believe in a future where he belongs,” she lamented.
Abdel Fattah’s case has drawn international attention, with rights groups accusing Egypt of detaining tens of thousands of political prisoners. Soueif claims her strike is her only remaining means to exert pressure. “If he isn’t released now, they’ll find another excuse to keep him locked away,” she warned.
Scheduled to meet UK Foreign Secretary David Lammy on November 27, Soueif expects concrete action from the Labour government. Lammy, a previous supporter of Abdel Fattah’s release, has yet to fulfill promises made during his time in opposition.
