Cuba has intensified its harassment of dissidents and human rights activists, according to Amnesty International.

The campaign group's report says the number of people intimidated and taken into custody has risen sharply over the past two years.

It says there were 2,784 cases of human rights abuses between January and September 2011, which is 710 more than in the whole of the previous year.

The criticism comes as Pope Benedict XVI's prepares to visit Cuba next week.

The Cuban government has not responded, but the Communist Party newspaper Granma claimed on Wednesday that dissidents are trying to stir up trouble to put pressure on the Pope to comment.

'Prisoners of conscience'

Amnesty has also put four Cubans on its list of "prisoners of conscience", defined as people who have been jailed because of their "political, religious or other conscientiously held beliefs".