France calls for release of Egyptian blogger Alaa Abdel Fatah

France has called on Egypt to free blogger Alaa Abdel Fatah who is in jail after refusing to recognise a military court. Egyptian activists have called on Occupy protesters to join an international day of protest on 12 November.

Lilian Wagdy/Wikimedia Commons

“France expresses its concern after the appearance before a military court of well-known blogger and activist M Alaa Abdel Fatah,” foreign ministry spokesperson Romain Nadal said Friday. “His detention because he is demanding to be heard by civilian jurisdiction is not justified.”

Egyptian opponents of military tribunals have called on Occupy protesters around the world to join them on an international day of protest because, they claim, their revolution is “under attack”.

Abdelfattah was placed under temporary detention for 15 days on Sunday after being charged with “inciting violence” during a demonstration by Coptic Christians against an arson attack on a church.

Clashes broke out during the protest, leading to 25 deaths. The demonstrators say that soldiers fired on them and that some of their number were crushed by tanks.

Abdel Fatah refused to answer questions at a military court on the grounds that the military was party to the events.

The Egyptian authorities should establish the rule of law, “respectful of fundamental freedoms and young people’s democratic aspirations”, Nadal said.

In a letter smuggled out of his cell, Abdel Fatah accused the army of hijacking the Egyptian revolution and asked of citing 20-year-old blogger Mina Danial, who was killed during the protest, as an “instigator of violence” set a “record in insolence”.