On April 8, 2025, ESOHR joined 33 international human rights organizations in a joint letter to UK Foreign Secretary David Lammy and EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs Kaija Callas, demanding the immediate and unconditional release of poet and democracy advocate Abdulrahman Yousef Al-Qaradawi, who was forcibly deported to the UAE on January 8, 2025 and has since been held under enforced disappearance.
The letter expressed deep concern about the violation of the rights of Abdulrahman, who was arrested in Lebanon at the end of December 2024 at the request of the UAE over a video in which he criticized the policies of Egypt, the UAE, and Saudi Arabia. Despite his lawyer's appeal against the extradition decision, he was deported on a private plane without any fair legal proceedings. Since his transfer to the UAE, his place of detention has not been made public, he has been completely isolated from the outside world except for a single one-minute phone call with his family, and a government lawyer has been appointed without his consent.
The organizations noted that Al-Qaradawi's detention represents a recurring pattern of cross-border repression and embodies systematic practices targeting writers, human rights defenders, and dissidents in the region. They pointed to a March 5 warning by UN experts that the worst fears of his extradition to the UAE had already been realized.
The letter emphasized that Abdulrahman's continued detention in the absence of formal charges and fair trial guarantees is a flagrant violation of international standards, particularly the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) and the Convention Against Torture (CAT).
The signatory organizations also held European countries, particularly the UK and the EU, morally responsible given their growing economic and diplomatic partnerships with the UAE, and stressed that silence in this case is complicit and undermines the credibility of the international commitment to human rights.
The letter called for urgent action, including
- Immediately disclose Abdulrahman's whereabouts and conditions of detention.
- Enable him to communicate with his family and international lawyers
- Ensure a fair trial and respect for his legal rights
- Allow periodic consular visits from the Turkish Embassy
- Immediate and unconditional release and return to Turkey, where he resides with his family
Signing Organizations:
- Egypt Wide For Human Rights
- Egyptian Front For Human Rights
- الديوان الديمقراطي
- الشبكة الأورومتوسطية لحقوق الإنسان
- المركز العربي لاستقلال القضاء والمحاماة
- المركز العربي لدراسات القانون والمجتمع
- المفكرة القانونية
- Egyptian Initiative for Personal Rights
- المنبر المصري لحقوق الإنسان
- The European Saudi Organization for Human Rights (ESOHR)
- World Organisation against Torture (OMCT)
- Egyptian Commission for Rights and Freedoms
- رابطة الحقوقيين الفلسطينيين
- ريد ورد لحقوق الإنسان وحرية التعبير
- معهد التحرير لدراسات الشرق الأوسط
- مركز أندلس لدراسات التسامح ومناهضة العنف
- Cedar Centre for Legal Studies
- Gulf Centre for Human Rights (GCHR)
- مركز الشرق الأوسط للديمقراطية
- مركز سيناء لحقوق الإنسان
- مركز وصول لحقوق الإنسان
- EDAC rights
- MENA Rights Group
- Refugees Platform in Egypt
- Law and Democracy Support Foundation
- Fair Square
- منظمة “بيبول إن نيد”
- منظمة الاتحاد من أجل الديمقراطية
- Amnesty International
- PEN International
- Human Rights Watch
- هيومنـا لحقوق الإنسان والمشاركة المدنية
- Najda for Human Rights