Sherryne Grace Badoui is advocating for her husband, Ahmed Kamel, who faces deportation from Saudi Arabia to Egypt after being detained at an immigration center. Kamel risks a life sentence and potential torture due to his past political activities. Legal complications and the lack of documentation regarding his extradition have exacerbated the situation, raising concerns about his treatment and the broader implications of political extradition.

Sherryne Grace Badoui has been tirelessly visiting a police station in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, in search of information regarding her husband, Ahmed Kamel, an Egyptian national facing imminent deportation to Cairo. Kamel, who has been held at a Saudi immigration detention center since November, is at risk of receiving a life sentence due to his involvement in pro-democracy protests in Egypt during 2011 and 2014. Rights groups have expressed concerns over the high likelihood of Kamel facing torture upon his return to Egypt.

Kamel fled to Saudi Arabia in 2015 after being released from an Egyptian prison. Since then, he has lived in Jeddah while maintaining a low profile and remaining politically inactive. His arrest on November 12, 2024, was attributed to a Red Notice issued by Interpol at the behest of the Egyptian government. However, Interpol has clarified that they were not responsible for the alert, although Saudi authorities and the Egyptian consulate continue to assert otherwise.

On the day of his imminent deportation, neither Kamel nor Badoui have received any official documentation regarding his arrest or extradition. Badoui, managing the responsibilities of caring for her two young children, has been engulfed in the complexities of the Saudi legal system. The stress of the situation is compounded by her feeling of hopelessness, as she remarked about the surreal nature of the situation: “I feel really hopeless. It is just really surreal to see that people can just pluck somebody that you love out of your life this way.”

The reason behind Kamel’s extradition remains vague, but organizations advocating for human rights suggest it may relate to politically motivated extraditions organized by the Arab Interior Ministers Council. In many instances, authorities have cited Interpol as the origin of extradition orders, while victims often lack access to necessary legal documentation. Badoui recounted a conversation with an Egyptian consulate official, who insisted multiple times that the extradition order came from Interpol, revealing the extent of the communication issues.

In a prior incident, Kamel was arrested while seeking a background check for an American visa at the Egyptian consulate. He was detained for three days under claims attributed to the same Red Notice. Unfortunately, this time he remains uninformed of the reasons behind his current detention. Badoui emphasized the discrepancies between the past and the present, stating, “In 2022, the justice system worked. Now, in 2024, two babies later they are destroying our lives for nothing.”

Following Kamel’s arrest, an Egyptian court issued a stay of execution indicating that he was no longer wanted pending trial, thereby suspending any detention according to Egyptian law. Yet, Kamel’s brother faced rejection when attempting to present the stay document to the Egyptian consulate, prompting subsequent attempts through other channels, including Interpol. Despite these efforts, communication continued to falter, and the eventual retrial date set for Kamel faced challenges due to the lack of documentation from Saudi authorities confirming his detention.

The situation creates a troubling scenario in which Kamel risks having a prior sentence reinstated due to his absence from court, a development that highlights the urgent need for transparency and appropriate legal processes. The continued uncertainties surrounding Kamel’s case have raised significant concerns among human rights organizations regarding the implications of political extradition in the region.

The case of Ahmed Kamel raises critical concerns regarding political extradition and the treatment of dissidents in Saudi Arabia. With imminent deportation to Egypt, where he faces a life sentence and potential torture, his wife, Sherryne Grace Badoui, grapples with the lack of transparency within the legal process. Despite official statements suggesting his legal protections, the complexities and lack of clarity in Kamel’s situation exemplify the ongoing struggles faced by political refugees in the region.

Original Source: www.middleeasteye.net

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