The Sudanese Embassy in Cairo has accused Egyptian authorities of unlawfully detaining and beating 16 Sudanese over the past six weeks, charges denied by Egypt.

Embassy spokesman Mohamed Gebara said Wednesday that the 16 were also "psychologically tortured," without providing further details. He was elaborating on an earlier report by the Sudanese state-run news agency SUNA, which quoted Khartoum's foreign minister, Ibrahim Ghandour, as saying he had proof of unspecified abuses.

Egypt's Foreign Ministry denied the accusations on Wednesday.

Gebara says he is surprised by Cairo's denial. He says the two countries had agreed on Tuesday to investigate the matter.

Twenty Sudanese migrants were shot dead in separate incidents this month along the Egyptian border as they tried to cross into Israel during shootouts between Egyptian forces and smugglers.