CAIRO (AP) — Egyptian security officials say vigilantes beat two alleged thieves, stripped them half-naked and then hung them in public in a small Nile Delta town. Both the men died.

The officials say the two men had stolen a rickshaw from a town in the province of Gharbiya. Angry residents in the town of Samanod beat the two suspects and hung them from a tree in a bus station on Sunday.

Security officials say residents who tried to help free the two men were pushed back by others in a crowd. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak to the media.

Thousands of Egyptian policemen are on strike, prompting the attorney general last week to release a statement encouraging citizen arrests.

Similar attacks have happened elsewhere in Egypt, where security has deteriorated since the uprising two years ago.