Egyptian-Palestinian Activist Ramy Shaath Released From Prison

Egyptian-Palestinian activist Ramy Shaath was released from detention in Egypt after 900 days, his family confirmed on Saturday. Shaath was released on Thursday night and deported after he was forced to renounce his Egyptian citizenship. He was turned over to a representative of the Palestinian Authority in Cairo and then flown to Jordan, Reuters reported. He flew from Jordan to France on Saturday, where he was reunited with his French wife, Celine Lebrun Shaath, who had been deported from Egypt after her husband’s arrest.

Shaath had been held in detention since June 2019, accused of aiding a terrorist group. He is a member of several secular political groups in Egypt and a co-founder of Egypt’s pro-Palestinian BDS movement. He is the son of senior Palestinian Authority official Nabil Shaath.

“If we are glad that the Egyptian authorities heard our call for freedom, we regret that they forced Ramy to renounce his Egyptian citizenship as a precondition for his release that should have been unconditional,” the family said in a statement.

Also on Saturday, Coptic Christian activist Ramy Kamel, who was detained in Egypt since November 2019 on charges including joining a terrorist group and spreading false news, was released from detention by the public prosecutor, Reuters reported.