US embassy employee detained in Egypt

CAIRO (AP) — A US embassy official says Egyptian authorities have held a local employee for nearly three weeks without charges.

Moufid Deak, spokesman for the U.S. Embassy in Cairo, says Ahmed Aleiba, an Egyptian citizen who works at the embassy, was arrested on Jan. 25, the anniversary of the uprising that deposed former President Hosni Mubarak in 2011. A security official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak to the media, confirmed Aleiba's arrest.

Military-aligned newspaper Al-Watan published an article in July mentioning Aleiba as an employee who arranged meetings between visiting American government officials and Muslim Brotherhood deputy head Khairat el-Shater. The government has cracked down on the group since former Islamist President Mohamed Morsi was removed from power by a coup in July.