Jailed British-Egyptian activist escalates hunger strike by refusing water as COP27 gets underway

SHARM EL-SHEIKH, Egypt — Jailed British-Egyptian national Alaa Abdel-Fattah stepped up his hunger onslaught by refusing water, ratcheting up fears for the beingness of 1 of the country's starring rights activists conscionable arsenic satellite leaders get successful Egypt for the commencement of the COP27 clime summit.

Amnesty International main Agnes Callamard said Sunday that authorities had little than 3 days to prevention Abdel-Fattah's life, informing that nonaccomplishment to intervene would overshadow the U.N.'s flagship clime conference.

It comes amid increasing fears implicit the deteriorating wellness of Abdel-Fattah. The 40-year-old has stopped drinking h2o successful a hopeless effort to unit Egyptian authorities to let him U.K. consular access.

The escalation of Abdel-Fattah's hunger onslaught has prompted sedate concerns for the salient quality rights activistic and writer, who had consumed conscionable 100 calories a time for much than 200 days.

Egypt is hosting the COP27 clime acme successful the Red Sea edifice municipality of Sharm el-Sheikh done to Nov. 18. The lawsuit has shone a planetary spotlight connected Egypt's quality rights record, with campaigners condemning President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi's argumentation of "mass arbitrary detention to crush dissent."

Egypt's el-Sisi has agelong claimed that determination are nary governmental prisoners successful the country.

"If they bash not privation to extremity up with a decease they should person and could person prevented, they indispensable enactment now," Callamard said astatine a quality briefing.

If authorities were to neglect to intervene successful the adjacent 72 hours "at the most," Callamard said Abdel-Fattah's decease "will beryllium holding connected to COP27, it volition beryllium successful each azygous discussion, each azygous treatment determination volition beryllium Alaa there."

Abdel-Fattah acquired British citizenship past twelvemonth and has since been seeking the close to a consular sojourn by representatives of the British embassy. The Free Alaa run says this close has truthful acold been refused.

Abdel-Fattah roseate to planetary prominence during Egypt's 2011 uprising and has been imprisoned for astir of the past 8 years.

He was sentenced astir precocious successful December past twelvemonth to a further 5 years successful situation for allegedly spreading mendacious quality via societal media aft sharing a station highlighting quality rights abuses successful Egyptian jails.

"I'm present to bash my champion to effort and shed airy connected my brother's lawsuit and to prevention him," Sanaa Seif, Alaa Abdel-Fattah's sister, said connected arriving successful Sharm el-Sheikh successful the aboriginal hours of Monday, according to Reuters.

"I'm truly worried. I'm present to enactment unit connected each leaders coming, particularly [U.K.] Prime Minister Rishi Sunak," Seif said. She had until precocious been starring a sit-in extracurricular the British Foreign Office successful London.

British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said successful a missive to Seif that helium was "very concerned" astir the situation, adding that the authorities was "totally committed" to swiftly resolving his case.

"Ministers and officials proceed to property for urgent consular entree to Alaa arsenic good arsenic calling for his merchandise astatine the highest levels of the Egyptian government," Sunak said.

Tasneem Essop, caput of the Climate Action Network, which includes much than 1,500 civilian nine groups, appealed to Sunak's authorities to bash each they tin to assistance escaped Abdel-Fattah.

"Sunak, the U.K. PM, he's coming to Egypt. And determination has been a monolithic planetary run to telephone connected the U.K. authorities to assistance escaped Alaa Abdel-Fattah," Essop said connected Monday astatine COP27.

"They should travel present and bash that. He should travel present successful summation to making statements connected climate," she added. "Come and assistance escaped Alaa."