Egyptian prosecutors deny imprisoned activist faced harm

CAIRO (AP) — Egypt’s prosecutors are denying allegations of torture and ill-treatment against one of the country’s most prominent activists who is serving a five-year sentence on charges of spreading false news. The Public Prosecution Office said in a statement released late on Thursday that a senior prosecutor was dispatched to the prison where Alaa Abdel-Fattah is being held now to investigate his nearly three-year-old claims about being beaten and denied basic rights while he was previously held at another prison complex. The statement says that after examining Abdel-Fattah, the prosecutor concluded that he showed no marks of torture. The activist’s family members immediately cast doubt over the credibility of the prosecutors’ investigation.