Egyptian authorities have reportedly detained hundreds of people in a nationwide crackdown following calls for anti-government protests, Human Rights Watch said today.

Over 500 people have been arrested and brought before prosecuting authorities in Cairo and elsewhere in the country since the outset of October, several lawyers told Mada Masr, while a heightened security presence remains deployed over public spaces as part of a response to calls to protest on November 11.

The Egyptian authorities this week detained the father and brother of exiled anti-regime YouTuber Abdullah El-Sherif in the Mediterranean city of Alexandria, amid an absence of protests despite previous calls for them to be held on Friday.

Several human rights organisations in Egypt have condemned the arbitrary arrests of people apparently in connection with the calls for protests on 11 November, during the COP27 conference in Sharm El Sheikh.

Egyptian security forces have arrested the deputy editor of the state-run Radio and Television Magazine from her home in Cairo.

Since October, hundreds of people have been arrested across Egypt, as well as outside the country, while at least 150 remain held in custody as authorities heighten security measures, deploy personnel and vehicles onto main streets and carry out arbitrary stop-and-searches in the capital.

The Egyptian authorities briefly detained an Indian climate activist marching on foot from Cairo to Sharm El-Sheikh, the host city of the COP 27 climate summit, and a lawyer who came to assist him, as the spotlight on Egypt’s abysmal human rights record grows. Both men were released on Monday. …

A South Sudanese student, who has now been deported, has accused the Egyptian government of torturing him whilst in detention.

Egyptian authorities have begun detaining people in response to calls for mass protests next month as the country’s economic and monetary situation continue to deteriorate, according to human rights lawyers.

With less than three weeks until Egypt hosts the UN annual conference on climate change (Cop27) in Sharm el-Sheikh, residents say the South Sinai city and its surrounding areas have turned into what looks like “a war zone” with security measures allegedly aimed at securing the event.