Saudi Arabia to imminently deport Egyptian activist facing life imprisonment
An activist awaiting deportation from Saudi Arabia to Egypt, where he faces life imprisonment, has been informed he will be extradited imminently.
Ahmed Kamel was sentenced in absentia to 25 years in prison for his role in pro-democracy protests in Egypt in 2011 and 2014. Rights groups warned that Kamel faces a high risk of torture should he be extradited.
Following detention for his involvement in the 2014 protests, Kamel was released on bail and fled to Saudi Arabia. He has since lived in Jeddah.
Kamel was arrested by Saudi authorities on 12 November this year, when he was informed that he was facing extradition to Egypt following a "red notice" issued by Interpol in response to a request from Egypt.
"Red notices" are requests filed by Interpol member states asking law enforcement agencies in other member states to locate and provisionally arrest wanted people. Member states decide whether to act on a red notice in accordance with their own laws.
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After Kamel’s lawyer brought his case to the public prosecutor, it was escalated to the Royal Court, the king’s chief executive office, which confirmed his extradition.
The court also ordered the detention of his wife, Sherryne Grace Badaoui, an American citizen, and their two children for deportation to the US.
“We’re in a scary place where anything can happen. Nobody’s given us any dates about when the deportation might happen,” she said.
On Thursday, Badaoui heard that the Ministry of Interior had issued a “final exit visa” for Kamel.
According to Badaoui, Kamel, who was being held at Shumaisi immigration detention centre, was transferred to southern Jeddah police station on 2 December after refusing to sign a document relinquishing his responsibility for Badaoui and his children. He was then transferred back to the detention centre for fingerprinting on Wednesday.
Badaoui told MEE that the Saudi authorities have been working to sever Kamel’s ties with the kingdom, having successfully transferred ownership of his car to his sponsor.
No red notice
Kamel was initially informed by the Saudi authorities that the extradition order came via a "red notice" issued by Interpol in response to a request from Egypt.
But neither Kamel nor his family have seen the official documents relating to the notice.
According to MENA Rights Group, one of the groups that published a statement calling for Kamel’s release, no red notice was issued by Interpol.
According to Tanya Boulakovski, human rights officer at MENA Rights Group, the order could have been issued by another body, such as the Arab Interior Ministers Council (AIMC), a regional body that can also facilitate extraditions.
“In each country of the Arab League, there's a national bureau that's usually in charge of circulating Interpol red notices, but often it's the same bureau that can also circulate ... AIMC extradition requests,” Boulakovski told MEE. “So it may be AIMC, it may be bilateral extradition agreements. We're not sure exactly.”
According to Boulakovski, MENA Rights Group has noted a growing collaboration between UN entities and the AIMC in recent years, as well as collaboration between Egypt’s Public Prosecution Office and the UN Office on Drugs and Crime.
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