Family urges Lebanon to release Egyptian poet Abdulrahman al-Qaradawi

The family of the Egyptian poet and writer. Abdulrahman Al-Qaradawison of the deceased Sheikh Yusuf Al-Qaradawihave sent an official letter to Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati.demanding that you intervene immediately to release the poet who is currently detained in Lebanon.

in a statement Posted on Sunday, Qaradawi’s family, who lives in Turkey as citizens of the country, confirmed that his detention in Lebanon was based “on malicious accusations and an unjust court ruling against him in Egypt in 2017.”

Abdulrahman was found guilty in a ruling in absentia by the Egyptian government on charges of “publishing false statements, press articles and literary poems in 2017,” as part of Egypt’s investigation. broader repression about any opposition to the current regime of Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi.

The family said they held Mikati responsible for Abdul-Rahman’s safety while he was imprisoned in Lebanon and urged his safe arrival to his family in Türkiye. They also stressed that handing him over to any country that pursues him “puts his life in danger, especially in light of the well-known history of human rights violations in those countries,” according to the statement.

The statement comes amid claims that Lebanon could hand over Qaradawi to the United Arab Emirates before January 9, when a parliamentary session is expected to be held in Beirut to elect a new president.

The United Arab Emirates are believed to have requested his arrest and extradition to Lebanon based on a video the Egyptian recorded at the Umayyad Mosque in Damascus, celebrating the fall of the Assad regime.

In the video, Abdul Rahman calls for the overthrow of “shameful Arab regimes” and “Zionist Arabs”, particularly “the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia and Egypt.”

The claims came from the Egyptian poet’s Lebanese lawyer, Mohammed Sablouh, who noted that any extradition from Beirut to Abu Dhabi would be illegal for multiple reasons, notably that Qaradawi was not a citizen of the United Arab Emirates and there was no extradition treaty between the Lebanon. and the United Arab Emirates.

Haydee Dijkstal, a specialist in international law who has taken charge of the Qaradawi case, pointed out that Lebanon was a signatory to the United Nations Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (UNCAT).

Dijkastal warned Lebanon against violating the convention that makes it illegal for Lebanon to extradite any prisoner to a country where they face a significant risk of torture or ill-treatment, which would include persistent human rights violators such as the United Arab Emirates and Egypt.

Qaradawi was initially detained at Beirut International Airport upon his return from Syria, following alleged cooperation between Lebanese and Egyptian authorities to locate opposition activists living abroad.

He played a notable role in the 2011 Egyptian revolution that saw dictator Hosni Mubarak overthrown, while he has also criticized the regime of current Egyptian president Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi.

While he is known for his liberal politics, including founding the left-wing ‘Kifaya’ (Enough) movement, his father, Yusuf al-Qaradawi, was a spiritual leader of the Muslim Brotherhood, which is banned in Egypt.