CAIRO: Ramy El-Sweissy, a member of April 6 movement, was kidnapped by security forces from his Cairo home and released the following day, the Arabic Network for Human Rights Information (AHNRI) reported. State security police on Monday released the 21-year-old Internet activist after detaining him for only one day. The reasons behind his release are unknown, but Gamal Eid, head of ANHRI told reporters that El-Sweissy was in good spirits following his ordeal. El-Sweissy was kidnapped from his home in the early morning hours and it was reported that his computer, among other personal items, was confiscated in the arrest. According to the group, El-Sweissy was intimidated to leave the politically active group. The group is calling for a new strike on April 6 to commemorate the birth of the movement and to protest numerous government policies. On his blog, Angry Arab, El-Sweissy referred to President Hosni Mubarak as "Ehud Mubarak in his criticisms of the Egyptian government's handling of the recent 22-day Israeli offensive on Gaza. Members from the group have repeatedly demonstrated, demanding the opening of the Rafah border crossing which connects Egypt to Gaza, the only crossing that bypasses Israel. El-Sweissy is the third activist involved in Gaza-related protests to be kidnapped by security and detained without charge. German-Egypt blogger Philip Rizk and Diaa Eldin Gad were both arrested on Feb. 6, for opposing how the closure of the Rafah crossing. While Rizk was freed four days later, Gad remains detained in an unknown location.
