EU urges Egypt to allow rights groups to do their work

(BRUSSELS) - European Union foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton urged Egypt on Friday to allow civil society organisations to do their work after "particularly worrying" raids at the offices of rights groups.

Ashton "has taken note with great concern of the news that Egyptian judicial and police officials have raided the offices of several local and international civil society organisations, some which are working in the field of democracy and human rights," her office said in a statement.

"This open demonstration of force against civil society organisations is particularly worrying as it comes in the midst of Egypt's transition towards democracy," it said.

The chief EU diplomat "calls on the Egyptian authorities to resolve the current situation and to allow civil society organisations to continue their work in support of Egypt's transition".

Egyptian police raided more than a dozen offices belonging to rights organisations on Thursday as part of what authorities called an investigation into alleged illicit foreign funding, sparking international condemnation.

The raids, in which no arrests were reported, came as the authorities blamed foreign-funded groups for political unrest in the country after an uprising ousted veteran president Hosni Mubarak in February.

The German government said it summoned the Egyptian ambassador to Berlin over the "unacceptable" raid at the Konrad Adenauer Foundation, a think tank and political foundation with close ties to German Chancellor Angela Merkel's conservative party.

The United States also voiced deep concern after two US rights groups -- the National Democratic Institute and the International Republican Institute -- were targeted in the operation.