UAE President Grants Presidential Pardon to Abdul Rahman Youssef Al-Qaradawi Following Cybercrime Ruling

UAE President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan has issued a presidential pardon for convict Abdul Rahman Youssef Al-Qaradawi, according to a report by state news agency WAM on Friday.

This executive clemency comes in the wake of an August 27 decision by the Cybercrime Circuit of the Abu Dhabi Federal Court of Appeal, which had previously sentenced the 53-year-old to 10 years in prison alongside a fine of AED 200,000 ($54,450) after finding him guilty of the charges against him. Officials have verified that all required legal measures are underway to implement the pardon.

Al-Qaradawi was extradited to the UAE in January 2025 following a deportation authorization by Lebanon’s caretaker Cabinet. He was initially detained by Lebanese authorities on December 29, 2024, at the Masnaa border crossing while entering from Syria after the fall of former Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.

During his arrest, Lebanese Prosecutor General Judge Jamal Al-Hajjar noted that Al-Qaradawi, who carried a Turkish passport, was held based on an Arab Interior Ministers Council notice distributed through Interpol. That red notice originated from an in absentia conviction by Egyptian judicial authorities concerning allegations of broadcasting false news and inciting violence and terrorism.