By AP

CAIRO: Amnesty International says several dozen activists who were detained by the Egyptian military for almost two days have been released.

The rights group on Saturday said it was still trying to establish the whereabouts of Egyptian activists detained in separate incidents Thursday.

The group of several dozen included staff members of Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch. Amnesty worker Said Haddadi, a French national, says the group was handcuffed for an afternoon and evening, and blindfolded for most of the following 24-hour period.

Haddadi says that during an interrogation, the military told him that the group was being held for its own protection.