Alaa Abd el-Fattah, the British-Egyptian human rights campaigner, has apologised unreservedly for what he accepted were shocking and hurtful tweets that he wrote more than 10 years ago in what he described as heated online battles. I have paid a steep price for my public support for LGBTQ rights in Egypt and the world. Abd el-Fattah was automatically granted British citizenship in 2021 under an immigration law that allows mothers to transmit their UK citizenship to their children, even if they are outside Britain. Kemi Badenoch, the Conservative leader, has demanded Abd el-Fattah’s deportation, saying: “I do not want people who hate Britain coming to our country.” Nigel Farage said he had reported Abd el-Fattah to the counterterrorism police. In his statment, Abd el-Fattah said: “This weekend was supposed to be the first time I celebrated my son’s birthday with him since 2012, when he was one year old.

Source: The Guardian December 29, 2025 15:40 UTC