The family of the Egyptian activist al-Qaradawi appeals to the Lebanese Prime Minister for his release Human rights news
Al-Qaradawi’s family is seeking the intervention of the Lebanese prime minister to prevent his deportation to Egypt, fearing a threat to his life.
The family of an Egyptian opposition activist Abdul Rahman al-Qaradawi has called on the Lebanese authorities to release him immediately, because there is a growing fear that he will be deported to Egypt, where he is wanted by law.
Members of Al-Qaradawi’s family issued a press release on Sunday saying they had sent a letter to Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati asking him to intervene in the case of the Egyptian poet and writer, who is also a Turkish citizen and lives with his family in Istanbul.
“As a family, we believe in the wisdom of the Lebanese leadership and the dignified people of Lebanon,” the press release said. “Lebanon has always been a symbol of the defense of freedoms and we appeal to the Lebanese Prime Minister, in the name of justice and humanity, to intervene immediately to free him and ensure his safe return to his family and three daughters who are waiting for him in Istanbul.”
Al-Qaradawi, the son of late Muslim Brotherhood spiritual leader Yusuf al-Qaradawi, was arrested on December 28 on an Egyptian arrest warrant, a Lebanese judicial official said, as quoted by the AFP news agency and the family. He was arrested at the Masnaa border crossing after entering Lebanon from Syria.
Al-Qaradawi was sentenced in absentia to five years in prison by an Egyptian court on charges of “opposing the state and inciting terrorism,” the official said.
The family said the verdict was in response to an article al-Qaradawi published in 2012 and warned that Lebanon would threaten al-Qaradawi’s life if it extradited him to Egypt.
“His extradition to any country that seeks him puts his life at risk, especially given the record of human rights violations in those countries,” said a press release issued on behalf of al-Qaradawi’s family.
Al-Qaradawi’s lawyer in Lebanon, Mohammed Sablouh, previously said his client could be tortured if extradited to Egypt, which human rights organizations such as Amnesty International accuse of repressing political dissidents and committing crimes including torture “with impunity”.
The letter to Al-Qaradawi’s family is part of a campaign calling for his release and return to Turkey.
The 53-year-old was a longtime opponent of Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak, who was ousted in the country’s 2011 revolution.
The activist has also become a vocal critic of Egypt’s current leader, President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, who came to power after a bloody 2013 coup against elected President Mohamed Morsi, who later died in prison.
