Government will seek Ibrahim Halawa’s return to Ireland if convicted

The Government will seek to have Ibrahim Halawa returned to Ireland regardless of the outcome of his trial, Foreign Affairs Minister Simon Coveney has said.

Mr Coveney said he expected Egypt to fulfil a commitment to allow Mr Halawa to serve his sentence in Ireland if convicted.

Mr Halawa is one of hundreds of people who are being tried in mass trial for serious offences related to alleged participation in a political protest, all of which he strongly denies.

Now 21, Mr Halawa was 17 at the time of his arrest in 2013, and his lawyers fear he may face the death penalty if convicted.

The trial is expected to end in the next few months, following the end of the prosecution’s case at the end of July.

Mr Coveney said he sent a personal message to Mr Halawa yesterday assuring him that the Government was working to bring him home.