BERLIN -- More than two dozen members of the German parliament have called upon Egypt to end its controversial show trial of 52 predominantly gay men being prosecuted with crimes against Islam, the Reuters news agency reports.

In a strongly-worded letter sent to the Egyptian ambassador in Berlin, a cross party group of 30 parliamentarians called on government officials in Cairo to stop the court case, which began in July, and release the men immediately.

The letter reads in part, "[It is our] hope that the accusations against this group of men will be dropped and that they will be released without delay... That should have happened a long time ago if Egyptian law and international conventions ratified by Egypt had been respected."

German lawmakers have also called on the Egyptian government to investigate accusations of mistreatment and torture of the men.

The 52 men, mostly in their 20s and 30s, were arrested May 11 on a Nile riverboat that served as a popular gay nightclub. The men have been kept behind bars since that time. Reports from Amnesty International say the men have been subjected to torture and have been denied visits from relatives.

Two main defendants face additional charges of "forming a group which aims to exploit the Islamic religion to propagate extremist ideas" and "denigrating monotheistic religions," which carry a maximum five-year sentence.

International human rights groups have said the men were being tried solely on account of their their sexual orientation and for exercising freedom of speech and association.

The initiator of the protest letter, Green Party politician Volker Beck, fought for 11 years for the passage of the Life Partnership Act, designed to give gay and lesbian couples access to civil marriage. The law was officiated in Germany last month.

Representatives from the US, Canadian, Belgian, Danish and Swiss embassies were present when the trial resumed in August. A Canadian diplomat and lawyer, Jean-Philippe Cachian, told the French Press Agency they were "sent by our embassies as observers."

Diplomats say privately the presence of these observers was meant to communicate to the Egyptian government that the world is watching and that the fate of these men is no small affair in countries upon which Egypt depends.

Whether these moves or those taken by German officials will have any impact on the outcome of the proceedings remains to be seen.