{"id":21099,"date":"2025-08-06T22:36:25","date_gmt":"2025-08-06T20:36:25","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/rpegy.org\/?post_type=editions&p=21099"},"modified":"2026-01-24T02:46:49","modified_gmt":"2026-01-24T00:46:49","slug":"200-days-of-abdulrahman-yusufs-enforced-disappearance-reveal-his-whereabouts-ensure-his-safety-release-him-now","status":"publish","type":"editions","link":"https:\/\/rpegy.org\/en\/editions\/200-days-of-abdulrahman-yusufs-enforced-disappearance-reveal-his-whereabouts-ensure-his-safety-release-him-now\/","title":{"rendered":"200 Days of Abdulrahman Yusuf\u2019s Enforced Disappearance: Reveal His Whereabouts. Ensure His Safety. Release Him Now."},"content":{"rendered":"

The undersigned organizations are extremely concerned over the continued enforced disappearance of Turkish-Egyptian poet and political dissident Abdulrahman Yusuf Al-Qaradawi for more than 200 days. Abdulrahman Yusuf was arrested in Lebanon on 28 December 2024 and forcibly extradited to the United Arab Emirates (UAE) on 8 January 2025, in flagrant violation of due process guarantees and other international human rights obligations, notably the principle of <\/span>non-refoulement<\/span><\/i>. His whereabouts and fate remain unknown amid an alarming silence from Emirati authorities and their ongoing refusal to permit him any communication with the outside world.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The Lebanese authorities accepted the extradition request by the Emirati authorities on charges of spreading \u201cfake news\u201d and \u201cdisturbing public security\u201d. The charges are linked to a video that he posted on his social media platforms while in Syria, in which he criticized Egyptian, Emirati and Saudi Arabian authorities. Abdulrahman\u2019s initial arrest in Lebanon followed a provisional arrest issued by the General Secretariat of the Arab Interior Ministers’ Council (AIMC) <\/span>within the League of Arab States<\/span>, at the request of the Emirati authorities, according to his family and lawyers. The AIMC is mandated to circulate arrest warrants issued by Member States of the League of Arab States to other member states in order to facilitate the apprehension of wanted individuals.<\/span><\/p>\n

The last known contact with Abdulrahman occurred on 23 March 2025, during a short and heavily monitored visit in Abu Dhabi by his family that lasted less than ten minutes in a facility not officially recognized as a place of detention. Since then, neither his family nor the lawyer appointed by the UAE authorities have received any official information regarding the legal proceedings, conditions of detention, or whereabouts, effectively subjecting him to enforced disappearance<\/span>.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The ongoing enforced disappearance of Abdulrahman <\/span>Yusuf <\/span>for<\/span> this extended period constitutes a grave violation of his rights under international law. It also raises serious concerns that he may be subjected to torture or other ill-treatment.<\/span><\/p>\n

Abdulrahman<\/span>\u2019s case illustrates an increasingly prevalent pattern of transnational repression, in which states collaborate to target dissidents and human rights defenders across borders. He did not voluntarily enter the UAE at any point, holds neither its nationality nor residency, and has never been convicted by any court. His transfer to a third country of which he is not a citizen or resident sets a dangerous precedent. It exemplifies the misuse of cross-border security cooperation as a tool to silence dissent.<\/span><\/p>\n

In <\/span>January<\/span><\/a> and<\/span> March<\/span><\/a> 2025, several UN experts issued two press releases calling for the stop of <\/span>Abdulrahman<\/span>\u2019s extradition from Lebanon to the UAE and demanding urgent clarification of his status in the UAE, respectively. His case is currently <\/span>pending<\/span><\/a> before the UN Working Group on Enforced or Involuntary Disappearances, which sent a <\/span>communication <\/span><\/a>on 20 February 2025 to the UAE requesting information on <\/span>Abdulrahman<\/span>\u2019s fate and whereabouts. To date, the UAE has failed to provide a response.<\/span><\/p>\n

We, the undersigned organizations, call for the following:\u00a0<\/b><\/p>\n

To the Emirati Authorities:<\/b><\/p>\n