Updated 12.10

Ibrahim Halawa's most recent trial date has been postponed until Saturday.

The Dubliner had been scheduled to appear before an Egyptian court earlier today, after being held for two years without trial already.

Ibrahim, who turned 20 on Sunday, was arrested in August 2013 during a political protest in Cairo.

He is facing a mass trial along with almost 500 others.

The Minister for Foreign Affairs, Charlie Flanagan, said: "Ireland’s Ambassador to Egypt, Damien Cole, represented the Irish Government at today’s hearing in Cairo and spoke directly both with Ibrahim’s family and with his Egyptian lawyer."

Government influence

Prior to the postponement, Jerry O'Connor of the Immigrant Council of Ireland is calling for the government to take a more proactive approach:

"The government mounted a very high profile campaign to free Brian Keenan and his sisters were certainly treated very differently to how Ibrahim's sisters are being treated, even now. They feel they are being forced to stand at the side of the road outside Leinster House and the Egyptian Embassy to get their voices heard."

The Department of Foreign Affairs says it has had extensive consultations with the Halawa family, including some 48 visits to Ibrahim himself.