UAE President pardons Abdul Rahman Youssef Al-Qaradawi following cybercrime conviction

UAE President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan has granted a presidential pardon to convict Abdul Rahman Youssef Al-Qaradawi, state news agency WAM reported on Friday.

The executive clemency follows an August 27 ruling by the Cybercrime Circuit of the Abu Dhabi Federal Court of Appeal, which sentenced the 53-year-old to 10 years in prison and imposed a fine of AED 200,000 ($54,450) upon conviction of charges brought against him. Authorities confirmed that all necessary legal procedures have been initiated to carry out the pardon.

Al-Qaradawi was extradited to the UAE in January 2025 after Lebanon’s caretaker Cabinet authorized his deportation. Lebanese authorities originally detained him on December 29, 2024, at the Masnaa border crossing upon his entry from Syria, following the overthrow of former Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.

At the time of his arrest, Lebanese Prosecutor General Judge Jamal Al-Hajjar stated that Al-Qaradawi—traveling on a Turkish passport—was detained pursuant to an Arab Interior Ministers Council notice issued via Interpol. The red notice stemmed from an in absentia verdict issued by Egyptian judicial authorities on charges related to broadcasting false news and inciting violence and terrorism.

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