Lebanon approves extradition of Egyptian activist al-Qaradawi to UAE

Despite being warned that he might face abuse there, the Lebanon’s government has decided to send Egyptian opposition activist Abdul Rahman al-Qaradawi to the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

After the cabinet approved, Lebanon’s prime minister’s office announced on Tuesday that the nation will send Yusuf al-Qaradawi’s son, who is now the son of the late Muslim Brotherhood cleric, to the UAE.

Shortly after returning from Syria, the 53-year-old was detained in Lebanon on December 28. He had been traveling there after opposition fighters toppled longtime ruler Bashar al-Assad.

The activist took a video of himself at the Damascus Umayyad Mosque before being arrested. He stated in the video that he hoped the Syrian people would emerge victorious after a turbulent period. He also criticized Saudi Arabia’s, Egypt’s, and UAE’s authorities.

The UAE and Egypt have both filed requests for his extradition.

Following Amnesty International’s urgent request for the Lebanese government to reject extradition requests to both Egypt and the UAE, the government made the decision on Tuesday.

According to Sara Hashash, the deputy director for the Middle East and North Africa for the global rights organization, “Abdul Rahman al-Qaradawi’s arbitrary detention occurred after he made comments against the Emirati, Saudi Arabian, and Egyptian authorities, and the requests for his extradition are believed to be based on the legitimate exercise of his right to freedom of expression.”

Criticizing authorities is not illegal. If returned to Egypt, Abdul Rahman al-Qaradawi would be at real risk of enforced disappearance, torture and other ill-treatment, and unfair trial leading to prolonged unjust imprisonment. If he is returned to the UAE, he could face arbitrary detention and other human rights violations.

Hashash argued that the Lebanese authorities’ commitment to the right to freedom of expression would be a “flagrant breach of the principle of nonrefoulement under international law” and that forcing him to be extradited to a nation where he is likely to face persecution.

Al-Qaradawi’s lawyer said he would file an urgent appeal to block his extradition on Wednesday morning, the Reuters news agency reported.

Al-Qaradawi, who also resides in Istanbul with his family, is also a Turkish national.

The activist has also criticised current leader Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, who came to power after a coup in 2013, and has long been a critic of Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak.

His sister, Ola Al-Qaradawi, has spent four years arbitrarily detained in Egypt on what Amnesty branded “bogus terrorism-related charges”.