Calls to Deport British-Egyptian Dissident After Old Posts Resurface

Old Tweets Ignite New Firestorm

It started with a single screenshot. Within hours, #SendHerBack was trending across UK timelines and MPs’ inboxes were groaning under the weight of identical outrage templates.

The target: Sara Anis, 31, a British-Egyptian campaigner granted asylum a decade ago after alleging torture by Cairo’s security services. The alleged crime: a string of 2014 Facebook posts disparaging British soldiers and, in one instance, praising the 2011 storming of Israel’s Cairo embassy.

“Britain took me in when my own country wanted me dead,” Anis told me over coffee in a north-London café so quiet you could hear the steam wand hiss. “Now they want to throw me out for words I wrote as a traumatised teenager.”

From Whistle-blower to Outcast

Anis first made headlines in 2018 when she smuggled out leaked videos showing Egyptian prison guards beating inmates. The clips were aired by the BBC and cited in a damning UN report. She was hailed inside Westminster as a fearless human-rights voice; ministers quoted her in Commons debates.

Fast-forward five years. A right-wing gossip site trawled her dormant Facebook account, stitched the most incendiary lines into a montage and posted it with the caption: “Meet the migrant who hates Britain.” The clip has 4.2 million views and counting.

The Political Pile-on

• Tory MP Neil Dorset tabled an urgent question asking why Anis retains refugee status “despite openly expressing hatred for our armed forces.”
• The Home Office confirmed it is “reviewing all available evidence,” though officials privately concede deportation would breach both the Refugee Convention and her right to family life—she has a British-born son.
• More than 70,000 people have signed an online petition demanding “immediate removal.”

On the opposite flank, Labour MPs and refugee charities warn of a witch-hunt. “We either believe in rehabilitation or we don’t,” said Streatham MP Bell Ribeiro-Addy. “Teenage posts cannot erase years of public-service journalism.”

A Life in Limbo

Anis now spends nights toggling between her toddler’s bedtime stories and a legal war room. Her legal-aid solicitor has filed a pre-action protocol arguing any revocation of status would be disproportionate and politically motivated.

Meanwhile, the threats pour in—some promising to report her to Immigration Enforcement, others darker. Police have logged 37 malicious-communications incidents. Her windows are fitted with panic buttons; the café where we meet is chosen because its owner, a fellow Egyptian exile, keeps the CCTV running.

“I love this country,” she insisted, eyes welling. “I pay taxes, I recycle, I cried when the Queen died. One stupid post and I’m forever the ungrateful foreigner.”

What the Law Says

Under the Nationality and Borders Act 2022, refugee status can be stripped if the claimant is deemed a danger to national security. Mere offensive speech rarely meets that bar. A 2021 tribunal ruling found “historical social-media activity, unless constituting incitement to violence, is insufficient” for withdrawal.

Yet legal scholars note the climate has shifted. “The political appetite for tough optics means even flimsy cases get prosecuted,” said Dr. Hanan Touati of SOAS. “The message is: activists, watch your digital footprint.”

The Bigger Picture

Anis’s story lands at a combustible moment: small-boat crossings dominate front pages, the Illegal Migration Bill is ping-ponging through Parliament, and the governing party faces pressure from Reform UK on its right flank.

“It’s a perfect storm,” commented MENA analyst Hafsa Halawa. “You have an asylum system portrayed as broken, a Muslim woman who isn’t shy, and old tweets that fit a narrative of ingratitude. She’s become a pawn in a culture war.”

What Happens Next

The Home Office must respond to her solicitors within 14 days. If officials proceed, Anis can appeal all the way to the Upper Tribunal, a process that could take years. In the meantime, she is legally barred from working while her asylum case is “under review,” forcing her onto Universal Credit.

Supporters are crowdfunding for a judicial-review challenge. The target: £60,000. They reached half within 48 hours after Stephen Fry retweeted the campaign.

As our interview ends, Anis pulls on a parka despite the spring warmth. “I survived Egyptian prisons,” she said, voice steady. “I won’t let Twitter jail break me.” Whether Westminster listens is another matter.