Hunger-striking mother of jailed activist prepared to die to ‘get Alaa out’

The mother of a British man jailed in Egypt has spoken from her hospital bed to say she is prepared to die on hunger strike if necessary to get her son freed.

Laila Soueif called on the Prime Minister to pressure Egyptian authorities to release democracy activist Alaa Abd El-Fattah, who has dual nationality.

She said if she did not survive, her death should be used as a leverage to set her son free.

Children want a mother, not a notorious mother - whether the notoriety is good or bad - but if that’s what it takes to get Alaa out of jail and to get all my children and grandchildren’s life back on track, then that’s what I’m going to do

Speaking to the Today programme on BBC Radio 4 from St Thomas’ Hospital in London, Mrs Soueif said: “My message is: use my death as leverage to get Alaa out.

“Don’t let my death be in vain.”

Mrs Soueif, who has lost 42% of her bodyweight and weighs 49kg, has not eaten for more than eight months and doctors say she is at risk of sudden death.

She told the broadcaster: “It’s something that I passionately don’t want to happen.

“Children want a mother, not a notorious mother – whether the notoriety is good or bad – but if that’s what it takes to get Alaa out of jail and to get all my children and grandchildren’s life back on track, then that’s what I’m going to do.”

In December 2021, Mr Abd El-Fattah was sentenced to five years in prison on charges of spreading false news, and should have been released last year.

In a conference outside the hospital on Tuesday, Sanaa Seif, Mrs Soueif’s daughter, said her mother’s blood sugar was still very low but that she was conscious.

She said: “She is fighting and I hope the Foreign Office uses this time her body has given us well.”

Mis Seif said she was supposed to have flown to Cairo on Tuesday to see her brother but stayed to be with her mother.

She had received two letters from Mr Abd El-Fattah – one of which was “very confused and short”, saying simply “Take care of yourself”.

“I am really worried about him,” she said.

We are going by the hour; they were measuring her vitals by the hour, at some point every 15 minutes

She also said she wanted to save her mother’s life but understands her position “as a mother”.

Ms Seif said: “The only reason she cares about staying alive is us. She doesn’t want to go on living life like this and I understand that.”

Ms Seif accused the Foreign Office of not working fast enough and claimed no one from the Prime Minister’s office had been in touch directly about the state of negotiations for around three weeks.

She said: “We are going by the hour; they were measuring her vitals by the hour, at some point every 15 minutes.

“I expressed my frustration how it is insane that they (the Government) are taking weeks. They have not told me they have changed their pace.”

Ms Seif added: “I imagine that means they don’t have much to say.”

Egypt gets a huge income from tourism, a lot of that tourism comes from Britain and I think that might well put the pressure on that is obviously needed

She also urged Foreign Secretary David Lammy to follow through on what he said when in opposition and limit the Egyptian ambassador’s access to Whitehall.

Conservative former minister Sir John Whittingdale, who is a member of the Foreign Affairs Committee, told the Today programme Mr Abd El-Fattah was a “political activist” who had not committed “any crime that we would recognise”.

He said Mr Lammy was “outspoken” in opposition but that his action in Government since then “simply hasn’t had an effect”.

Sir John also called on the Foreign Office to change its travel advice for Egypt to warn Britons there is a risk they could “fall foul of the Egyptian authorities”.

“Egypt gets a huge income from tourism, a lot of that tourism comes from Britain and I think that might well put the pressure on that is obviously needed,” he said.

A spokesperson for the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office said: “We are committed to securing Alaa Abd El-Fattah’s release.

“The Foreign Secretary stressed the urgency of the situation in a call with his counterpart on Sunday morning, and further engagement at the highest levels of the Egyptian government continues.

“We are deeply concerned by Laila’s hospitalisation. We remain in regular contact with Laila’s family and have checked on her welfare.”