Egypt stops Human Rights Watch staffers at airport

Egyptian authorities stopped the executive director of Human Rights Watch and another US staffer from entering the country Monday ahead of the release of a critical report by the group on mass killings by security forces last summer, the group and security officials said. An airport official said the two were turned back on instructions from a security agency, without elaborating. The two had spent nearly 12 hours in Cairo International Airport who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak to reporters. This is the first time Egyptian authorities have stopped staffers from the New-York based group entry from entering the country. Human Rights Watch was to release a report Tuesday about the security crackdown last year on protesters backing deposed Islamist President Mohammed Morsi. Hundreds were killed in one of the raids, described by Human Rights Watch as the worst massacre in Egypt's modern history. Executive Director Kenneth Roth and Middle East and North Africa Director Sarah Leah Whitson were to brief diplomats and journalists on the findings of their investigation into the bloody events in July and August last year following the ouster of Morsi, according to AP.