REDWORD for Human Rights and Freedom of Expression welcomes the release of Egyptian poet and activist Abdul Rahman Yusuf al-Qaradawi, following a presidential pardon issued by the United Arab Emirates.
Al-Qaradawi was arrested in Lebanon in December 2024 and extradited to the UAE in January 2025, where he remained in detention. In August, he was sentenced to ten years in prison and fined AED 200,000 on charges related to his expression and political views.
As RED WORD welcomes his return to freedom and to his family, we reaffirm that peaceful expression must never be grounds for detention, prosecution, or punishment, and renew our call for the protection of writers, journalists, and activists from imprisonment and criminalization for expressing their views.
