CAIRO: The head of a leading Egyptian human rights group who was held for two weeks on terrorism charges said on Saturday he hoped that the campaign to secure his release would help others still jailed on similar allegations.
Activists saw the detention last month of Gasser Abdel Razek, executive director of the Egyptian Initiative for Personal Rights (EIPR), and two of the group’s other staff, as the latest escalation of a broad crackdown on political dissent under President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi.
Egypt’s foreign ministry had said EIPR was operating illegally, an accusation the group denies. There has been no official statement from public prosecutors since Abdel Razek’s release, and officials could not be reached for comment.
The arrests, which came after EIPR hosted a briefing on human rights for 13 senior diplomats in Cairo on Nov. 3, sparked rare public criticism from Western states and an international campaign on social media.
Abdel Razek said he was unclear why he had…