Rights activists condemn Egypt’s ‘extrajudicial killings’ of opponents

Human rights activists have accused Egyptian security forces of extrajudicial killings, saying 79 civilians were murdered last month in the country.

“There is a systematic policy for killing opponents without trial,” rights activist Ezzat Ghoneim told the Anadolu Agency.

He argued that Egyptian security forces now shoot dead opponents during raids on homes or during anti-regime protests.

“Jailed opponents are also being denied medicine, leading them to die in prison,” he said.

In a report issued this week, Human Rights Monitor said that 79 civilians were killed in extrajudicial killings in Egypt last month.

The London-based rights group said that the highest number of killings was reported in the restive Sinai Peninsula, where 38 people were killed by security forces, including eight children and a woman.

The organisation also documented the cases of 18 opponents, who had died of “medical negligence” in Egyptian prisons.

Anadolu could not reach an Interior Ministry spokesman for comment on the accusations.