British-Egyptian activist Alaa Abd El-Fattah has issued an unequivocal apology for what he describes as "shocking and hurtful" historic social media posts, which resurfaced shortly after his emotional return to the United Kingdom.
A Controversial Homecoming
The historic tweets, in which Mr Abd El-Fattah appeared to call for violence against "Zionists," emerged after he landed in the UK on Boxing Day 2025. His return followed several years of imprisonment in Egypt and a pardon from President Abdel-Fattah el-Sisi in September of the same year. In a statement released on Monday 29 December, the activist expressed dismay that the posts were being used to question his integrity and had even sparked calls for his UK citizenship to be revoked.
"I am shaken that, just as I am being reunited with my family for the first time in 12 years, several historic tweets of mine have been republished and used to question and attack my integrity and values," he said. He added that while some posts had been "completely twisted," he understood how others were offensive. "Looking at the tweets now - the ones that were not completely twisted out of their meaning - I do understand how shocking and hurtful they are, and for that I unequivocally apologise," Mr Abd El-Fattah stated.
Political Fallout and Defence
The apology comes amid significant political pressure. Figures including Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch, shadow justice secretary Robert Jenrick, and Reform UK leader Nigel Farage have called for the Home Secretary to investigate stripping the activist of the citizenship he was granted in December 2021 under Boris Johnson.
In his defence, Mr Abd El-Fattah, now a middle-aged father, contextualised the posts as "mostly expressions of a young man's anger and frustrations" during a period of regional crisis and police brutality in Egypt. He stressed that he takes allegations of antisemitism "very seriously" and claimed some tweets were misunderstood. For instance, one alleged to show homophobia was, he said, actually ridiculing it, while another was mocking Holocaust denial, not endorsing it.
A Long Fight for Freedom
Alaa Abd El-Fattah was a leading figure in Egypt's 2011 Arab Spring uprising. His most recent detention began in September 2019, and he was sentenced to five years for spreading false news in December 2021. His case drew international condemnation, with UN investigators calling his imprisonment illegal. Both Conservative and Labour governments lobbied for his release, which was ultimately secured via a presidential pardon.
He has now flown to Brighton to reunite with his young son, whose birthdays he missed due to his activism. "I missed those birthdays because of my consistent promotion of equality, justice and secular democracy," he said, citing his public defence of LGBTQ rights, Egyptian Christians, and his campaigns against torture.
The activist expressed gratitude for the UK's support, stating he had "received huge empathy and solidarity from people across the UK, enough to win me my freedom." A Foreign Office spokesperson confirmed his release was a "long-standing priority" but added the government condemns the "abhorrent" historic tweets. It is understood Prime Minister Keir Starmer was unaware of the posts when he celebrated the activist's return.
