Amnesty attacks Egypt rights record in report

January 24, 2014 - Egypt has seen state violence on an "unprecedented scale" since the army deposed Islamist President Mohamed Mursi last July following mass protests against his rule, Amnesty International said in a report on Thursday. Interim Prime Minister Hazem el-Beblawi, speaking at the World Economic Forum in Davos, responded by saying critics were projecting "a distorted picture" by ignoring attacks on the security forces that have spiked since Mursi's removal.

The Amnesty report came out two days before the third anniversary of the mass uprising that toppled President Hosni Mubarak in 2011. It said the authorities "quash dissent and trample on human rights" with mass arrests, curbs on the freedom of expression and a new law that severely limits the right to protest. About 1,400 people have been killed in political violence since army chief Abdel Fattah al-Sisi ousted Mursi, mostly due to "excessive force used by security forces", the London-based international human rights group said. Since Mursi's removal, lethal shootings and bombings targeting the police and army have also become commonplace. The state has declared itself to be in a war on terror. (Source: Reuters)