GENEVA - A group of UN rights experts has called on Egypt to protect people’s rights to freedom of speech, following a surge of arrests targeting demonstrators, rights defenders and journalists, and reported use of violent crackdowns by authorities.

In response to a wave of peaceful protests across the country on 20 and 21 September which called for President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi’s resignation, and an end to government corruption, authorities have reportedly used live ammunition, rubber bullets and tear gas, and arrested at least 3,000 people including bystanders, academics, and lawyers in the upheaval.

The experts said “We express our concerns at the heavy-handed response by Egyptian security forces against the protesters and others... We recall that the primary duty of law enforcement is to protect peaceful assemblies”, adding that use of force is not permitted unless strictly necessary, and lethal force, should be a measure of last resort.