The Egyptian regime is under growing pressure to take action in the case of Khaled Said, the 28-year-old man who died while being arrested in Alexandria on June 6. Witnesses say he was severely beaten and horrific photographs of his body show extensive injuries to his head and face. The authorities say he choked to death while trying to swallow a packet of cannabis.

Yesterday, in the biggest protest so far, several thousand demonstrators took to the streets of Alexandria – prominent among them reform campaigner Mohamed ElBaradei and former presidential candidate Ayman Nour (reports: BBC, New York Times, al-Masry al-Youm).

The US State Department has called for a "transparent investigation" and Human Rights Watch has called for prosecutions. HRW said in a statement:

"Witness accounts and the photographs of Khaled Said's mangled face constitute strong evidence that plainclothes security officers beat him in a vicious and public manner. All those involved should be speedily interrogated, and the prosecutor should fully investigate what caused the fractures and trauma clearly evident on his body."

Posted by Brian Whitaker, 26 June 2010.