3 Egypt journalists go on hunger strike to free detained activist

Three Egyptian journalists began a hunger strike yesterday in solidarity with British-Egyptian political activist and journalist, Alaa Abdelfattah, who has been on hunger strike for over 200 days.

“Our hunger strike began at the headquarters of our union, the Egyptian Journalists Syndicate, in solidarity with the strike of prisoner of conscience Alaa Abdelfattah, who is now fighting death, and in solidarity with all prisoners of conscience in Egypt,” wrote Eman Auf, Mona Selim and Rasha Azab on Facebook.

“We have stopped eating because Alaa Abdelfattah is in danger of death” AFP news quoted Selim as saying.

“We demand the release of all prisoners of conscience, estimated by human rights organisations at 60,000,” she added.

In December, an Egyptian court sentenced Abdelfattah to ten years imprisonment for allegedly spreading “false news”. He has been on hunger strike for over 200 days to protest his unfair detention after being handed a five-year sentence for broadcasting false news.

Last week he announced he will escalate his hunger strike and stop consuming the daily 100 calories he has lived on since April.

On Saturday, British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak pledged that he would raise Alaa’s case with the highest levels in Egypt while in the country to attend the global climate summit COP27.

OPINION: Alaa Abdelfattah, the jailed Egyptian-British dissident on hunger strike