Egypt's President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi issues rare apology after lawyer beaten by police
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sissi speaks during a joint press conference with Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban in the Parliament building in Budapest, Hungary, Friday, June 5, 2015. El-Sissi is staying on a two-day visit in Hungary. (Zoltan Mathe/MTI via AP) (The Associated Press)
Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sissi has issued a rare apology after a police officer beat a lawyer, sparking a general strike by the country's lawyers.
The Lawyer's Syndicate issued the call for a strike that began Saturday. They said it was to protest a deputy police chief who attacked a lawyer in the country's Nile Delta.
In statement Sunday, el-Sissi said: "I apologize to the Egyptian lawyers and to all Egyptian citizens who have been the subject of any abuse."
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}In Egypt, police and powerful security agencies act with near impunity against opponents or those trying to engage in unwelcome political activity. Rights activists report a return of torture, abuses and arbitrary arrests surpassing even the 29-year rule of autocrat Hosni Mubarak, who was toppled in Egypt's 2011 revolt.