Egypt court sentences 529 Morsi supporters to death

Egypt court sentences 529 Morsi supporters to death





Monday, March 24, 2014


This is the first death sentence against Morsi supporters since the ouster of the elected president by the army on July 3
A criminal court in the Upper Egyptian province of Minya on Monday sentenced 529 supporters of ousted president Mohamed Morsi to death and cleared 16 others, according to judicial sources.
The court has referred the sentence to the grand mufti – Egypt's top religious official – for endorsement, the sources told Anadolu Agency.
According to the Egyptian law, the Mufti's opinion is advisory.
The court will issue the final verdict on April 28, according to the judicial sources.
"The court hearing was held without the presence of the defendants or their lawyers," Tariq Fouda, the head of the Minya Bar Association, told AA.
This is the first death sentence against Morsi supporters since the ouster of the elected president by the army on July 3.
All defendants, including 397 being tried in absentia, face charges of committing violence in Minya in August following the security forces violent dispersal of pro-Morsi sit-ins in Cairo and Giza the same month, leaving hundreds of protesters killed.
Egypt's military-backed authorities have launched a massive crackdown on the Brotherhood, which propelled Morsi to power in 2012, since his ouster, arresting thousands of members and sympathizers.