Two Edinburgh third years have been arrested in Egypt while on year abroad

Edinburgh students on their year abroad in Egypt have been told by Edinburgh University to return to the UK.

The decision by the university came after two third year students were detained by Egyptian authorities in Cairo. Both students have now been released.

The university told The Edinburgh Tab students studying in Egypt have arrived safely back in the UK, or "are in the process of leaving".

All students have been questioned by the Foreign Office and Egyptian authorities.

Egypt has seen a rise in government crackdowns on suspected anti-government activists and protestors in the past two months. Around 3,120 people have been arrested since the 20th September when hundreds of people took to the streets to protest Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi.

The reason for the Edinburgh students' arrests has not been confirmed.

Nine students in total were studying in Egypt at either The American University of Cairo or the International Language Institute, Cairo. Students were undertaking either single or joint-honours Arabic degree programmes.

A spokesperson for Edinburgh University told The Edinburgh Tab: "Two of our students in Egypt were recently detained and subsequently released by the Egyptian authorities in Cairo.

"The University is obviously very concerned when it hears of incidents such as this, particularly when they involve our own students.

"We have a responsibility to act in the best interests of our students and to take decisive action when there are concerns for safety and wellbeing. We therefore required all of our students in Egypt to return to the UK.

"All students have now done so or are in the process of leaving. We are working closely with the students to minimise the impact of any disruption to their studies and to provide alternative placements."

If you are a student who has been affected by this, DM your experiences to The Edinburgh Tab Instagram, or email [email protected].