Mother of Egypt detainee ready to end hunger strike if UK makes progress

Laila Soueif outside Downing Street last month. She has been hospitalised after a dangerous fall in her blood sugar levels. Photograph: Isabel Infantes/Reuters

A mother declared at risk of sudden death due to her 150-day hunger strike to free her jailed son has been persuaded to end her fast if UK ministers show any sign of progress in efforts to seek his release.

Laila Soueif, 68, is seeking the release of her son, the British-Egyptian prize-winning writer Alaa Abd el-Fattah, from a jail in Cairo. She has attempted to protest outside Downing Street for an hour each weekday to keep her son’s cause in the minds of ministers.