Five human rights groups have condemned the arrest of Sherif Othman, an Egyptian-American while visiting the United Arab Emirates.

The rights groups called on the UAE authorities to release him. They also appealed to the international community “not to assist the Egyptian government in exporting the oppression that Egyptians suffer from at home to dissidents abroad.” They said that at the request of the Egyptian government, the UAE arrested Othman, who resides primarily in the United States, on November 6 while he was in Dubai for a family visit. Othman is known for his social media posts criticizing the regime of President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi.

The Cairo Institute for Human Rights Studies and the Egyptian Front for Human Rights said that Othman was arrested only two days after entering the UAE. He was not allowed to communicate with his lawyer for a whole month. On November 30, the Emirati authorities asked their Egyptian counterparts for additional information about Othman. Human rights groups have expressed fear that Othman will be deported to Egypt.