A verdict is expected today in the trial of Ibrahim Halawa, whose detention in Egypt for almost three years has drawn international condemnation.
Mr Halawa (20), an Irish citizen, has been in prison since August 2013, when he was arrested at the Fateh mosque in Cairo during protests against the ousting of then-president Mohamed Morsi.
He and 493 others have been put on mass trial, but the proceedings have been adjourned 13 times to date, and no evidence has been heard in the case. About 80 of the defendants have been tried in absentia.
At the most recent adjournment, in March, the court indicated that verdicts and sentences would be handed down this month. That has raised hopes that, barring another adjournment, the protracted legal process could conclude when the trial resumes today.
Arrested
Mr Halawa, from Firhouse in south Dublin, was aged 17 when he and his three sisters were arrested in Cairo, where they were visiting their extended family.
His sisters – Fatima, Omaima and Somaia – were released on bail after three months and returned to Dublin, but he has been held since his arrest in conditions that have been condemned by human rights groups.
Amnesty International has declared Mr Halawa a prisoner of conscience and called for his unconditional release.
The Egyptian government has said that, if convicted, Mr Halawa could not face the death penalty, but his lawyers say that on the basis of the charges against him the death penalty is not excluded.
The Halawa case has dominated relations between Ireland and Egypt for the past three years.
Raised case
Officials from the Irish embassy in Cairo have made 51 consular visits to Mr Halawa, while Taoiseach Enda Kenny and two ministers for foreign affairs – Eamon Gilmore and Charlie Flanagan – have raised the case on a number of occasions with their Egyptian counterparts.
However, the authorities in Cairo have maintained they cannot intervene while the judicial process is ongoing.
If Mr Halawa is sentenced today, the campaign for his return to Ireland will focus on efforts to secure either a pardon or a presidential decree.
The latter was used to secure the release of the Australian journalist Peter Greste in 2015.
Members of Mr Halawa's family and his solicitor Darragh Mackin of KRW Law met Mr Flanagan on Tuesday to discuss the next steps.
Speaking afterwards, Mr Mackin said they warmly welcomed the talks on the eve of what was likely to be the final hearing in the case.
“Tomorrow is likely to bring the conclusion of what is the criminal justice proceedings and likely to start what will be an intense and direct campaign for Ibrahim’s release,” he said.
“In co-ordination with the Department of Foreign Affairs, we intend to lodge the necessary applications in the coming days should a verdict be handed down.”
Sinn Féin MEP Lynn Boylan, who has campaigned for Mr Halawa's release, said that without pre-empting any court ruling, "sentencing handed down in similar mass trials has been very harsh and based on very little evidence, so one cannot help but be concerned for Ibrahim's fate".
Presidential decree
In the event of a guilty verdict being handed down, she would call on Mr Kenny and Mr Flanagan to pursue a presidential decree "with vigour".
The executive director of Amnesty International in Ireland, Colm O’Gorman, said he hoped the trial would reach a conclusion. “There is no question in our mind other than that Ibrahim has been detained for almost three years purely for peacefully exercising his right to freedom of expression and freedom of assembly,” he said.
