Boot out Egyptian 'extremist' before UK is stuck with him, Labour told

Shabana Mahmood is being urged to deport a controversial Egyptian dissident 'before UK is stuck with him' amid reports he could be stripped of his citizenship by Cairo.

The Home Secretary faced fresh calls to remove Alaa Abd El-Fattah's British nationality over his historical tweets which called for the murder of Jews and police and spoke of his hatred for white people.

It comes after it emerged that El-Fattah, who spent much of the past decade in prison in Cairo, could have his Egyptian citizenship removed, making it impossible to deport him from Britain under international law.

Reform UK leader Nigel Farage said: 'The Labour Government needs to strip Alaa Abd El-Fattah of the undeserved British citizenship handed to him by the Tories and kick this Egyptian hatemonger out of the country. Now, before it is too late. Remember, we cannot remove British citizenship if it leaves an individual stateless. So, if the Cairo government beats Britain to it and removes [his] Egyptian citizenship, we will be stuck with him. And who benefits from that?

'What's clear from this whole sorry saga is that we cannot trust Labour or the Tories to keep our country safe.'

Shadow Home Secretary Chris Philp added: 'This man has expressed racist anti-white, anti-Semitic and violent views. He has no place in the UK and should be deported urgently.

'The Government must act now, before the chance is lost.

'But I fear Keir Starmer and Shabana Mahmood are too weak to do what is needed to remove extremists like El-Fattah from this country.'

El-Fattah landed in the UK last week following a long campaign calling for his release from jail in Egypt, where he was charged with spreading false news about the country's authoritarian government.

But critics unearthed a string of his online rants just hours after Sir Keir voiced his 'delight' at his presence in the UK.

El-Fattah has since issued a partial apology in an apparent attempt to resist calls for his removal. 

However, there were claims in Egypt that the apology could be used as a pretext for removing his Egyptian citizenship. 

Mohammed Maree, from the Egyptian Centre for Strategic Studies, said public anger was growing at his failure to offer a 'similar apology to Egyptian society'.

He said calls to remove El-Fattah's citizenship were being 'treated with great seriousness' by the government in Cairo.

Khaled Hass, an Egyptian security analyst, said Cairo appeared to be taking the issue seriously, adding: 'The apparent aim would be to shut down any discussion in the UK about revoking his British citizenship.

'Such a move would place the British Government in a bind, as UK law prevents the removal of citizenship if it would render an individual stateless.

'If pursued, this would be a calculated attempt to embarrass Starmer and force Britain to retain responsibility for Alaa, as well as teach Britain not to pressure Cairo over human rights-related cases in the future.

'The message is clear. You got involved. You didn't need to. It's your mess now.'

El-Fattah was granted British citizenship in 2021 on the basis that his mother was born in this country while her mother was visiting as a student.

In the past, officials were able to make an assessment of the 'good character' of applicants seeking citizenship through this route.

But this was dropped in 2019 following a Supreme Court ruling in a separate case brought under the European Convention on Human Rights.

Yesterday, UK government officials were unable to say whether El- Fattah had ever been to Britain before his arrival on Boxing Day.

Government sources have played down the prospect of El-Fattah's removal, saying the courts have set a 'very high bar' for depriving individuals of their citizenship.

However, Mr Philp said Ms Mahmood has powers under the British Nationality Act to remove people who are deemed 'not conducive to the public good'.