Egypt denies Regeni was detained

(ANSA) - Rome, February 15 - Cairo on Monday denied media reports that Italian researcher Giulio Regeni was detained by Egyptian security forces before being tortured and murdered, State news agency MENA said. "In an official statement published by the interior ministry, an information department source denied reports published in the Western media that Italian academic Giulio Regeni was arrested by members of the security services before his death," MENA reported. Italian investigators looking into the death, however, are taking the hypothesis that the Egyptian officials were involved seriously, ANSA sources said.
    The 28-year-old's burned, cut, and mutilated body was found dumped in a ditch on February 3 after he went missing on January 25 - the fifth anniversary of the uprising that ended the regime of Hosni Mubarak.
    The Cambridge University PhD student, who was conducting research in Cairo, was reportedly scared after he was photographed at a December 11 independent Egyptian trade union meeting.
    There has been speculation Egyptian security forces may have mistaken Regeni for a spy or that the killing could be linked to an article Regeni wrote under a pseudonym, which referred to that meeting.
    Italian Foreign Minister Paolo Gentiloni on Monday said that in coming days he'll review progress with the Italian investigative team that has been in Cairo for about 10 days probing Regeni's brutal murder.
    Gentiloni called Italy's partnership with Egypt "an important one" and said he expects "full and total collaboration on the part of the Egyptian authorities".
    "It's clear that we won't settle for easy reconstructions or convenient truth," Gentiloni said.
    "And it's also clear that the passage of time won't diminish our efforts on this issue," he said. International media have argued that Regeni's death raised important questions about the alleged repression of opponents to President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi's government in Egypt.
    Premier Matteo Renzi said before Regeni's funeral in the northern town of Fiumicello on Friday that Egypt's friendship with Italy means that it must find and disclose the truth about Regeni's murder.
    "It's a dramatic case and I once again I express my condolences to Giulio's family and I say what we have already said to the Egyptians - friendship is a precious thing and it is only possible with the truth," Renzi told Radio Anch'io.
    Egyptian Ambassador to Rome Amr Helmy said Monday that international media reports on Regeni's being picked up by police were "false" and the investigation could be hurt by what he called "speculation".