The chairman of the Dáil’s foreign affairs committee, Pat Breen, will travel to Cairo on Tuesday to discuss the case of Irish student Ibrahim Halawa with senior Egyptian officials.
The Fine Gael TD said he intended to visit the 19-year-old, from Firhouse in south Dublin, who was arrested after a protest in August 2013 and is being held in an Egyptian prison.
Mr Breen met members of Mr Halawa’s family in Leinster House on Monday ahead of his two-day visit.
“The meeting with Ibrahim’s sisters was a valuable opportunity to hear the family’s concerns for Ibrahim’s health and wellbeing,” he said. “The discussions will inform my visit – on behalf of the joint committee – during which I intend to meet Ibrahim in prison.”
Tora prison
Mr Halawa and his three sisters sought sanctuary in the Al Fateh mosque amid violent clashes between supporters of ousted president Mohamed Morsi and the security forces two years ago. His sisters – Omaima (20), Fatima (22) and Somaia (27) – have since returned to Dublin. They had been held separately from their brother in Tora prison.
Meetings have been scheduled for Mr Breen in the Egyptian capital with senior political figures, including Egyptian foreign minister Sameh Shoukry.
The human rights organisation Amnesty International has described Mr Halawa as a prisoner of conscience. Mr Halawa is being tried as part of a mass court action against almost 500 people.
