Egypt's human rights record worsened: France's Macron

CAIRO (AA) - Egypt's human rights situation has worsened than under former President Hosni Mubarak, French President Emmanuel Macron has said.

Macron held talks with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi on Monday as part of his current two-day visit to Egypt.

"Things have got worse since October 2017," when al-Sisi visited Paris, Macron said on the sidelines of his visit to Egypt, according to France 24.

Mubarak, who ruled Egypt for three decades, was overthrown by a popular uprising in 2011.

Macron said he will talk "more openly" about the issue with al-Sisi asserting that "it is in the interests of President Sisi and Egyptian stability."

Macron said the Egyptian regime has "relatively authoritarian characteristics that are presented by leaders as necessary to avoid instability, in particular by the Muslim Brotherhood."

"Today, it is not simply political opponents who are imprisoned," Macron said. "But also opponents who are in the traditional democratic camp, who do not threaten the stability of the regime."

"These are journalists, homosexuals, women and men who have convictions but who seem to pose absolutely no threat to the regime," the French president said.

Macron said he will discuss with al-Sisi the case of French teacher Eric Lang, who died after being violently beaten on September 13, 2013 while being held for a week at a police station in Cairo.

Egypt usually rejects any criticism of its human rights record and asserts that it respects human rights.