A variety of media are report that according to a new UK Home Office document, Egyptian Muslim Brotherhood fleeing from Egypt may qualify for political asylum in the UK if they meet certain criteria of persecution. According to an Al-Araby report:
August 7, 2016 New guidance published by the UK’s Home Office says that Muslim Brotherhood [MB] members may qualify for political asylum in Britain if their lives and livelihoods are under threat in Egypt.
The document entitled Country Information and Guidance Egypt: Muslim Brotherhood, states that an individual may apply for asylum in the UK because of ‘a fear of persecution or serious harm by the state because of the person’s actual or perceived involvement with the Muslim Brotherhood’.
The 22-page document alludes to the tactics that have been used against political opponents of Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, stating that MB members ‘may be able to show that they are at risk of persecution, including of being held in detention, where they may be at risk of ill-treatment, trial also without due process and disproportionate punishment’.
The new guidance also states that Egyptians who are not official MB members but have been deemed to be so by authorities may also be granted refuge in the UK. This is of particular relevance to many Egyptian journalists who have been subjected to repression since the political takeover by Sisi’s regime in 2013.”
Read the rest here.
Al-Araby is also reporting that the UK position has been harshly criticized by the Egyptian government:
August 10, 2106 Egyptian parliamentarians have slammed new guidance issued by the UK’s Home Office on Muslim Brotherhood members seeking refuge in Britain, claiming the move underlines Britain’s “long-standing tolerance of Islamic extremism”.
Members of the legislative chamber, which is made up primarily of loyalists of anti-Brotherhood President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, joined the Egyptian Ministry of Foreign Affairs in condemning the British decision to consider asylum applications from Muslim Brotherhood members or associates who face real threats of detention, torture and trial without due process.
Read the rest here.
As the GMBDW has already explained in the UK media, the UK has long served as the “command and control” centre for the Muslim Brotherhood in Europe.
The Home Office document can be found here.