British-Egyptian activist Alaa Abdel Fattah has been freed and reunited with his family after spending the past six years in jail in Egypt.
One of the country's most prominent political prisoners, he was pardoned by Egyptian President Abdul Fattah al-Sisi on Monday.
Video of the blogger and pro-democracy activist, 43, at home following his release showed him grinning widely and jumping up and down as he celebrated with his mother, Laila Soueif, and sister, Sanaa Seif.
His other sister, Mona Seif, told the BBC from the UK that his release was a moment of collective hope.
She expressed a desire for this to be the beginning of releasing other political prisoners detained under Sisi's rule and the end of what she called a very dark chapter.
UK Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper welcomed the pardon, saying she was grateful to President Sisi for this decision and looked forward to Abdel Fattah being able to return to the UK to reunite with his family.
Abdel Fattah was released from Wadi al-Natrun prison late on Monday and celebrated reuniting with his family at his mother's apartment in Giza.
His mother, 68, who launched a 287-day hunger strike last September to protest against his imprisonment, stated: I can't even describe what I feel.
She added, We're happy, of course. But our greatest joy will come when there are no [political] prisoners in Egypt.\
In an interview, his sister Mona expressed her eagerness to visit Alaa, describing the past 12 years as filled with madness, nightmares, and heartache. And now Alaa is out, Alaa is free, Alaa is home, she cried.
Abdel Fattah, who first gained attention during the 2011 uprising that ousted President Hosni Mubarak, spent much of the subsequent years in prison under a government crackdown on dissent led by Sisi.
He was previously sentenced to five years in prison for participating in an unauthorized protest, and in 2021, he received another five-year sentence for sharing supposed false information on social media. Despite holding British citizenship since 2021, Egypt denied him access to British diplomats.
Abdel Fattah’s release followed a petition from Egypt's National Council for Human Rights, reflecting the family's complex and emotionally charged struggle for liberty.
Mona Seif acknowledged the global solidarity surrounding their campaign and attributed some of the pressure to the UK government’s influence. Ultimately, she credited her mother's hunger strike for leading to this presidential pardon.
Mona hopes Alaa will be allowed to leave Egypt to reunite with his son, Khaled, who lives in Brighton, emphasizing the memories they've lost due to his long absence.
She stressed that Abdel Fattah’s release is not just a personal victory but a beacon of hope for others still imprisoned for their beliefs. The National Council for Human Rights characterized the pardon as a commitment to justice and fundamental freedoms.
