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Egypt must investigate activists' detention

Amnesty International has called for an investigation into the detention of some 35 human rights activists and journalists, including two Amnesty International staff members, who were freed after spending almost two days in military custody.

The Egyptian and international human rights activists, lawyers and journalists were arrested Thursday when military police raided the offices of the Hisham Mubarak Law Center.

"We welcome the news that these activists have been freed, but we are outraged that they were detained in the first place and by the manner in which they have been treated," said Malcolm Smart, Amnesty International's Middle East and North Africa director.

"We remain very concerned about activists belonging to groups such as the 6 April Movement,  the Youth of Justice and Liberty and the National Association for Change, who were detained in separate incidents on 3 February and whose whereabouts we are still trying to establish.

"The Egyptian authorities must now carry out an urgent independent investigation into why human rights activists monitoring protests in Cairo were targeted in this way, and who gave the orders for it."

The international human rights activists, including Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch staff, were released on Friday. The Egyptian activists detained with them were released on Saturday.

Topics: Arbitrary arrest and detention, Human rights monitors, Human rights activists, Human rights,