CAIRO, Feb. 13 (UPI) -- Some 16 human rights organizations have demanded investigations into allegations of torture and sexual assault of protesters held in Egyptian prisons.
The demands follow a wave of hundreds of arrests of protesters marking the third anniversary of the Jan. 25 uprising that pushed President Hosni Mubarak from power, Ahram Online reported.
The rights groups demanded doctors have access to all prisoners detained during the protests, a number the groups estimated at about 1,000. They also want representatives from the rights groups to be allowed to visit the prisons and talk to detainees.
Aida Seif El-Dawla of the Nadeem Center for the Rehabilitation of Torture Victims said the number of arrests cannot be confirmed because people inquiring about detained family members are often arrested and lawyers harassed and sometimes assaulted.
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A number of activists released statements that described alleged torture of protesters sand severely overcrowded conditions in the prisons.
Essam Sultan, the leader of an Islamist party, said he was denied food and clean water for 16 days and that he was allowed to wear only a light undergarment despite the cold weather.
He was one of hundreds of Islamist opposition members detained after the ouster of President Mohamed Morsi in July.
On Tuesday, the Ministry of Interior denied the claims of torture and abuse, saying it would "take all necessary measures against anyone proved to have carried out violations in light of [the ministry's] change of orientation and our insistence that the human rights and dignity of detainees be respected by policemen."
Journalists Against Torture said 96 assaults against journalists were recorded during January. Thirty were beaten and three were shot.
