Egypt’s military on Tuesday freed prominent rights defender and reporter Hossam Bahgat, a day after his detention sparked calls for his release from the United Nations, a rights activist told AFP.

Egypt's military on Tuesday freed prominent rights defender and reporter Hossam Bahgat, a day after his detention sparked calls for his release from the United Nations, a rights activist told AFP.

"He called me and said he's been released from the military intelligence building," said Gasser Abdel-Razek, executive director of the Egyptian Initiative For Personal Rights group that Bahgat founded.