Egyptian human rights report: 191 killed due to violence in the last year

The Egyptian Human Rights Organization addressed on Tuesday in its annual report the state of human rights in Egypt during the last year.

The report referred to a 9% increase over 1996 in incidents of violence during the last year, during which 191 persons were killed. The report laid the responsibility for the killing of policemen, citizens and tourists on the violent groups in Egypt, describing these operations of violence as representing a new stage of violence.

Moreover the report stated that there is no positive change in the legislative structure in Egypt, referring to the expansion of work according to the emergency law which has been in effect for three years.

The report also stated that incidents of torture and mistreating citizens continue in police departments, and it criticized the reported arrest and detention of hundreds of citizens who are part of political opposition groups. At the conclusion of its report, the organization asked the criticized organizations in Egypt to address human rights.

The government also called for reexamining laws that contradict the international charters and halting all security practices that damage Egypt's reputation.