Clinton 'very concerned' about sexual assault on CBS News correspondent Lara Logan

Washington, Feb 18(ANI): US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has turned up the heat on the Egyptian government over the sexual assault on CBS News correspondent Lara Logan in Cairo.

The State Department said that Clinton is "very concerned" about the incident, and has dispatched her diplomats to push Egyptian authorities to get to the bottom of the situation.

"The Secretary is obviously aware of the case and very concerned by it," the New York Post quoted State Department spokesman Mark Toner, as saying.

He also called the situation "paramount" and referred to it as a "horrific incident".

"Obviously the safety and wellbeing of journalists has been a concern throughout this entire situation in Egypt. This entire process has been of paramount importance to us," Toner said.

"We've engaged with the Egyptian government and in multiple cases we've tracked the whereabouts and safety of journalists throughout," he added.

Earlier, on February 15, CBS News had released a statement revealing that Logan had been beaten and sexually assaulted while covering the celebrations in Tahrir Square following the resignation of then President Hosni Mubarak.

CBS News indicated that she was overwhelmed along with her camera crew and security staff: "It was a mob of more than 200 people whipped into frenzy. In the crush of the mob, she was separated from her crew."

"She was surrounded and suffered a brutal and sustained sexual assault and beating before being saved by a group of women and an estimated 20 Egyptian soldiers," it added.

The 39-year-old returned to her hotel after the assault and was flown out of the country within hours on a chartered network jet.

According to the Committee to Protect Journalists, Logan is one of nearly 140 news correspondents who have been injured or killed since January 30 while covering the political unrest in Egypt. (ANI)