Egypt shuts down human rights watch website day after release of systematic torture report in jails

Egypt has blocked the website of human rights watch just a day after the organization released a report on systematic torture in the country’s jails.

The report based on the accounts of 19 former detainees and the family of another; claimed Egyptian authorities used arbitrary arrests, enforced disappearances and torture.

In a statement released on Wednesday, Egypt’s foreign ministry lambasted the report, saying it defamed the country and ignored progress made on human rights in recent years.

In the report, the New York-based rights group said security services in Egypt used torture as a systematic practice against suspected opponents of the government.