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Egypt says Italian student was not arrested before his death Egypt says Italian student was not arrested before his death
(about 1 hour later)
CAIRO — Egypt is denying reports that an Italian doctoral student doing research in Cairo was arrested shortly before his death, saying that an investigation into Giulio Regeni’s killing continues with full Italian collaboration. CAIRO — Egypt on Monday denied reports that an Italian doctoral student doing research in Cairo was arrested shortly before his death and said an investigation into Giulio Regeni’s killing is continuing with full Italian collaboration.
An Interior Ministry statement issued Monday says the outcome of the ongoing probe will be made public once there is “solid” information. The ministry oversees the police and security agencies. The outcome of the ongoing investigation would be made public once there is “solid information,” according to a statement by the Interior Ministry, which oversees the police and security agencies.
Regeni was living in Cairo to research Egyptian labor movements for his doctorate from Britain’s Cambridge University. His body was found on Feb. 3, nine days after he disappeared. “The expanded investigating team tasked with uncovering the circumstances of the killing of the young Italian man continues its work round the clock, in full collaboration with the Italian side,” the ministry said.
Italian state TV said Friday that Italian investigators have spoken to a witness who told them that two alleged plainclothes policemen stopped Regeni and escorted him away as he walked from his Cairo apartment to the subway station. However, Italy’s foreign minister, Paolo Gentiloni, said Monday that Rome would evaluate the progress of Italian investigators in Cairo to verify that they have received the full cooperation Italy expects of its partner.
“It is clear that we will not be satisfied with easy reconstructions and convenient truths,” he said. “It is also clear that the passage of time will not diminish our commitment to this question.”
Regeni, 28, was living in Cairo to research Egyptian labor movements for his doctorate from Britain’s Cambridge University. His body was found on the side of a road west of Cairo on Feb. 3, nine days after he disappeared. His funeral was held on Friday in his hometown of Fiumicello in northeastern Italy.
At the time, Italian state TV said Italian investigators have spoken to a witness who told them that two alleged plainclothes policemen stopped Regeni and escorted him away as he walked from his Cairo apartment to the subway station.
Egyptian authorities initially blamed Regeni’s death on a road accident. A second autopsy, done in Italy, determined that he suffered a fatal fracture of a cervical vertebra, either from a strong blow to the neck or from forced twisting of the neck.
There were multiple fractures in his hands, feet and elsewhere, and his face was heavily bruised, the autopsy found.
Regeni disappeared on Jan. 25, the day Egypt marks the anniversary of the start of the 2011 uprising that ousted longtime autocrat Hosni Mubarak. This year, Egyptian police and security agents were out in force on Cairo’s streets, determined to quash any protests marking the occasion.
Egypt’s handling of the Regeni’s death partially mirrors its protracted probe and handling of the Oct. 31 crash of a Russian airliner over the Sinai Peninsula in which all 224 on board were killed. More than three months after the tragedy, Egypt is still investigating that incident and has only said that it’s premature to determine with any certainty the cause of the crash before a multinational investigation completes its work and publishes its findings.
Egypt’s Islamic State affiliate claimed responsibility for the downing of the Russian aircraft, saying it had placed a bomb aboard the plane inside a soda can.
The head of Russia’s FSB security service, Alexander Bortnikov, said on Nov. 17 that the plane was brought down by a homemade bomb placed on board in a “terrorist” act. The plane crashed shortly taking off from Egypt’s Red Sea resort city of Sharm el-Sheikh.
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Associated Press reporter Colleen Barry contributed to this report from Milan, Italy.
Copyright 2016 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.Copyright 2016 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.