Ibrahim Halawa trial postponed again
The trial of Ibrahim Halawa in Egypt has been postponed yet again.
The 19-year-old Dubliner has been waiting in a Cairo jail for over two years for his case to be heard. Today, the case was adjourned until 15 December.
He was originally arrested at an anti-Morsi protest in the Egyptian capital in August 2013.
The Irish Government has come in for criticism for their failure to secure Ibrahim's release.
The Minister for Foreign Affairs Charlie Flanagan today said Ibrahim's lawyers made an application for his release at today's hearing, with our Embassy's support.
Colm O'Gorman of Amnesty International Ireland said the failure to proceed with the trial shows the flaws in the Egyptian justice system.
He said: "It's been postponed nine times…The Egyptian criminal justice system is just massively discredited at this point (by) the fact that it's even holding mass trials involving many hundreds of people and passing down mass sentences, including mass death sentences.
"Amnesty International has carefully researched this case. Ibrahim is a Prisoner of Conscience, held only for peacefully exercising his right to freedom of expression and freedom of assembly. Egypt must release him, immediately and unconditionally.
"We urge the Irish Government to redouble their efforts to secure the immediate and unconditional release of Ibrahim Halawa. He should be at home with his family and friends, where he belongs, not languishing in awful conditions in an Egyptian prison."
