Giulio Regeni: Egypt Accepts Italy's Request To Send Experts To Probe Murder

Egypt protest for Giulio Regeni
Activists and Italian nationals living in Egypt take part in a rally in memory of Italian student Giulio Regeni on February 6, 2016, outside of the Italian embassy in Cairo. Egypt agreed on Sunday to... Mohamed El-Shahed/AFP/Getty

Egypt agreed Sunday to allow Italian experts to travel to Cairo to examine CCTV footage as part of a probe into the murder of Italian student Giulio Regeni.

"The Egyptian public prosecutor approved the Italian side's request to send Italian experts," a prosecution statement read.

On January 25, 2016, 28-year-old Regeni disappeared. His body was discovered more than a week later at the side of a road on the outskirts of the Egyptian capital.

Regeni, a PhD researcher at the University of Cambridge, had been conducting work on Egyptian labor unions before his disappearance—a delicate issue because the threat of large strikes and heightened unrest in the country.

Speculation mounted that the Egyptian authorities may have been behind his death as signs of torture were found on Regeni's body, including bruises, burns and stab wounds.

Security sources told Reuters in April 2016 that Egyptian security services arrested Regeni outside a metro station before taking him to a domestic security compound.

However, the Egyptian government has strongly denied any involvement.

Egypt's public prosecutor Nabil Sadek said Sunday that the experts, as well as a German company that works to salvage CCTV footage, would examine video recordings from the metro station in the Cairo's Dokki neighborhood.

It is hoped that the investigation will allow "the facts of the incident and its perpetrators," Sadek added.

The minister previously supplied Italian authorities documents it had requested in September and met for talks with Italian prosecutors in December over the case.

Read more: Egypt Investigating Reuters Cairo Chief Over Giulio Regeni Story

The Egyptian prosecution said in December that it had questioned policemen over Regeni's dearh, AFP news agency reported. But it did not suggest that the policemen were under suspicion.

In April 2016, Italy withdrew its ambassador from the country over the lack of urgency of the Egyptian authorities into the investigation over his death.

Regeni's murder remains a high-profile case in Italy, causing diplomatic tensions between Cairo and Rome.

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