Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch warned that war crimes may have been committed when Egypt carried out airstrikes in the Libyan city of Derna last month.
At least 7 civilians, including 3 children were reportedly killed in the attack.
Egyptian Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Badr Abdelatty however rubbished the claims, saying they were “nonsense reports based on wrong information”.
“The Egyptian authorities must publicly disclose detailed information on all airstrikes carried out in Derna on 16 February, including targets, and measures taken to avoid incidental harm to civilians,” said Hassiba Hadj Sahraoui, Middle East and North Africa Deputy Director at Amnesty International.
“Attacks which do not discriminate between civilians and fighters are war crimes. When perpetrated as part of a systematic and widespread attack against a civilian population, murder is a crime against humanity.”
Human Rights Watch also called for a “speedy and transparent investigations into the deaths,” with Sarah Leah Whitson, Middle East and North Africa director saying,
“Egypt and Libya say they are fighting extremists affiliated with ISIS, but that doesn’t give them a free hand to kill civilians.”
“All parties to the conflicts in Libya need to do their utmost to spare civilians and should immediately investigate any civilian casualties,” she added.
“Even if the Egyptian military believed that fighters were present in the house or in the vicinity, they should have taken the necessary precaution to identify who else was in the house and in the neighbourhood to avoid or at least minimize civilian casualties,” said Ms Hadj Sahraoui, in the Amnesty International press release.
The organisation also warned that reprisal attacks committed militants allied to Islamic State could also constitute war crimes, as violence in Libya escalates.
“Civilians in Libya are in mortal danger as retaliatory attacks by all sides spiral even further out of control in the aftermath of the horrific murder of the 21 Egyptian Copts,” added Ms Hadj Sahraoui.