Briton jailed in Egypt has 'deteriorated' since going on hunger strike

Alaa Abdel-Fattah, who has spent most of the past decade in prison for his criticism of Egyptian leaders, has gone on a hunger strike earlier this month as the UN climate conference was held in Sharm el-Sheikh

Alaa Abdel-Fattah's condition has "seriously deteriorated" since his hunger strike (

Image: Nariman El-Mofty/AP/REX/Shutterstock)

The family of a British-Egyptian activist jailed in Egypt say his condition has "seriously deteriorated" after he went on a brutal hunger strike.

Alaa Abdel-Fattah's mother, aunt and two sisters visited him at Wadi elNatrun prison, just north of Cairo, today for the first time in almost a month and said he was not well.

One of the sisters, Mona Seif, tweeted: "The news of the visit is disturbing", adding that her condition had "severely deteriorated" following her hunger strike, which appears to have ended.

She did not provide further details on her condition, but said the family would share more information later today.

Abdel-Fattah, 40, is one of Egypt's most prominent pro-democracy activists.

He had stepped up a hunger strike and stopped all calories and water at the start of the UN climate conference in the Egyptian resort of Sharm el-Sheikh earlier this month to draw attention on his case and that of other political prisoners.< /p>

Abdel-Fattah's mother, Laila Soueif, holds a letter from her son (

Picture:

Amr Nabil/AP/REX/Shutterstock)

Concerns over his health have intensified as the family has not been allowed to see him.

Last Thursday, prison authorities began an unspecified medical intervention on Abdel-Fattah, raising concerns that he was being force-fed.

Earlier this week, Abdel-Fattah informed his family in handwritten notes that he first started drinking water again and then also ended the hunger strike.

Abdel-Fattah's mother, Laila Soueif, receives...