Organisers of a march to the Egyptian border with Gaza have said that three participants were abducted by plainclothes officers in Cairo amid a wave of arbitrary detentions, deportations and abuse by security forces, Reuters reports.

In a statement today, organisers said three international participants were forcibly taken from a Cairo cafe on Monday by security officers who did not identify themselves.

Those named were Jonas Selhi and Huthayfa Abuserriya, both from Norway, and Saif Abukeshek, a Spanish citizen of Palestinian origin and one of the march’s organisers.

The statement said that according to Selhi, all three men were blindfolded, beaten and interrogated. Abukeshek, he said, faced especially severe abuse. His whereabouts remain unknown, while Selhi and Abuserriya have since been deported to Norway, organisers said.

“We urge the Egyptian authorities to immediately release Saif Abukeshek and all other detained march participants,” the statement said, adding that the group had suspended its Egypt-based plans and made efforts to coordinate with authorities.

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