Alaa Abd El-Fattah: Friend and star of The Crown, Khalid Abdalla, calls for British-Egyptian activist’s release
The possibility a British-Egyptian pro-democracy activist on hunger strike could die while the COP27 summit takes place is “a terrifying prospect”, a friend and star of The Crown has said.
Khalid Abdalla, who plays Dodi Fayed in the hit Netflix show, said he wanted to be on the “right side of history” in speaking up for Alaa Abd El-Fattah.
The 40-year-old pro-democracy writer and activist has been kept behind bars in Egypt for most of the past decade.
In December last year, El-Fattah was sentenced to five years in prison, after being accused of spreading fake news.
“The actual reason technically for him being in prison is for sharing a Facebook post, it’s completely absurd,” Abdalla told ITV’s Good Morning Britain.
“A Facebook post about the torture of a fellow prisoner.
“Right now we’re facing the possibility of his death in the coming days before COP27 ends. It’s a terrifying prospect.”
He added: “All 120 world leaders are descending on Sharm el-Sheikh right now. If all of them can’t result in Alaa being released from prison, then what hope have we got of saving the climate?”
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Sister on Alaa Abd El-Fattah’s hunger strike
It comes as one of El-Fattah’s sisters arrived in the Egyptian resort to pile more pressure on Rishi Sunak.
Sanaa Seif told reporters: “I’m here to do my best to try and shed light on my brother’s case and to save him.
“I’m really worried. I’m here to put pressure on all leaders coming, especially Prime Minister Rishi Sunak.”
The family, who had recently been leading a sit-in outside the British Foreign Office in London, held a vigil on Sunday at Downing Street.
And last week they spoke to Foreign Secretary James Cleverly and Lord Tariq Ahmad, North Africa minister, about the case.
El-Fattah’s second sister Mona Seif has said her brother will be escalating his hunger strike in prison, including a water strike as COP27 takes place.
“Alaa is not desperate to die,” she said.
Read more:
Family of jailed British-Egyptian writer Alaa Abd El-Fattah call for his release ahead of COP27
PM writes to family of jailed British-Egyptian writer as sister urges him to get ‘proof of life’
“These are the actions of a man desperate to end this ordeal he has been sucked into for nine years and desperate to be reunited with his family.
“We honestly believe that if Alaa doesn’t make it while COP is taking place in Egypt, if Alaa is not freed by that point, Alaa is going to die in prison.”
Tens of thousands of government critics, including journalists, environmental groups, and human rights defenders, are imprisoned in Egypt on “terrorism” charges, according to Human Rights Watch.
An amber warning has been issued for snow in a part of the UK, likely to cause travel delays and “stranding some vehicles and passengers”.
The warning, which covers south west England, also warns some rural communities could become cut off and is in place until 2pm this evening.
Pic: Met Office
There is also a yellow weather warning for snow covering the southern counties of England until midnight on Wednesday.
The warning stretches from Kent to Cornwall and up to south London and the Met Office said between 2cm and 5cm of snow could accumulate fairly widely, with as much as 10cm over higher ground.
This week is expected to see the coldest nights of the year, with temperatures potentially reaching -14C on Wednesday night and -16C on Thursday night, both in the North East of England and Scotland, the Met Office said.
Weather warnings issued on Tuesday for snow and ice covering the parts of Wales, the North West of England, west and northern parts of Scotland as well as Northern Ireland will remain in place until midnight tomorrow.
The forecaster said some roads and railways are likely to be affected and there could be icy patches on untreated roads.
Pics: AP
Meanwhile the Environment Agency has said at least 300 properties have flooded across England since New Year’s Eve. It estimates more than 41,000 properties have been protected.
Heavy rainfall over the New Year caused significant river and surface water flooding across the North West of England and Yorkshire and snowmelt has brought further disruption to parts of England, particularly the Midlands, the agency said.
Read more from Sky News:
Terrifying firestorm rips through home of film stars and billionaires
Homes destroyed – how people are coping with floods
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Man says flooding ‘came out of nowhere’
Floods minister Emma Hardy said: “My sympathies go out to the people, businesses and communities impacted by the recent flooding across the country.
“I want to express my heartfelt thanks for the vital work that the Environment Agency and emergency services are doing to keep people safe. People must continue to follow their advice and sign up for flood warnings.”
Flood warnings
Some 100 flood warnings were in force across England on Wednesday, with people urged to remain vigilant over the coming days.
A danger-to-life warning was issued on Tuesday morning for the River Soar near Barrow upon Soar, Leicestershire, but was later removed.
People living in caravan parks in the area were urged by the Environment Agency to act, with a large-scale evacuation needed to save lives.
Firefighters have rescued dozens of people across Leicestershire since Monday, Leicestershire Fire and Rescue Service said.
Hundreds of schools were closed across the UK, with road and rail links blocked, as Manchester, Bristol and Liverpool John Lennon airports suspended flights because of the conditions.
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