Egypt Brotherhood chief among 683 sentenced to death
Court also reverses 492 death sentences out of 529 passed in March, commuting most of those to life in prison.
File photo of pro-Mursi demonstrators holding Egyptian flags and a poster of deposed President Mohamed Mursi. PHOTO: REUTERS/FILE.
MINYA:
An Egyptian court on Monday sentenced Muslim Brotherhood leader Mohamed Badie and 682 supporters to death, a lawyer and prosecutor said.
The same court also reversed 492 death sentences out of 529 it passed in March, commuting most of those to life in prison.
The defendants sentenced on Monday were accused of involvement in the murder and attempted murder of policemen in the southern Minya province on August 14, the day police killed hundreds of ousted president Mohamed Morsi's supporters in clashes in Cairo.
Several female relatives waiting outside the courtroom fainted on hearing news of the verdict.
"My son does not even pray, he does not even know where the mosque is," said one woman, whose son was among the 529 sentenced to death in March.
The rioting last August 14 erupted as news spread that police had killed hundreds of Morsi supporters while dispersing two protest camps in Cairo.
The court's verdicts can be appealed at the Court of Cassation, which would probably order a new trial or commute the sentences for the 529 already given the death penalty, legal expert Gamal Eid said.
Defence lawyers boycotted the last session, branding it "farcical" after the mass death sentencing which the United Nations denounced as a breach of international human rights law.
Defence lawyer Khaled Elkomy claims that 60 per cent of the 529 defendants, including teachers and some doctors, have evidence that "proves they were not present the day they were accused of attacking the Matay police station" in Minya, a statement released by human rights group Avaaz said.
The government has defended the court's handling of the case, insisting that the sentences were passed only "after careful study" and were subject to appeal.
Prosecutor Abdel Rahim Abdel Malek defended the charges against the 529.
"We have strong evidence that incriminates all those sentenced to death," he told AFP.
"We have videos, witness accounts... documents that prove that the Muslim Brotherhood had called on its supporters to attack police stations and public and private property in case the sit-in at Rabaa al-Adawiya (in Cairo) was broken up, and that's what happened," he said.
Last month's death sentences sent a chill through opponents of the military-installed regime, which has held mass trials of thousands of those alleged to be Muslim Brotherhood supporters since Morsi's ouster.
At least 1,000 people have been sentenced since December, all in groups of 10 or more. Jail terms passed range from six months to life, as well as the death penalty.
Amnesty International says that more than 1,400 people have been killed in the police crackdown since the army overthrew Morsi, Egypt's first elected and civilian leader.
Morsi and Badie, jailed as part of the crackdown, each face several trials.
An Egyptian court on Monday sentenced Muslim Brotherhood leader Mohamed Badie and 682 supporters to death, a lawyer and prosecutor said.
The same court also reversed 492 death sentences out of 529 it passed in March, commuting most of those to life in prison.
The defendants sentenced on Monday were accused of involvement in the murder and attempted murder of policemen in the southern Minya province on August 14, the day police killed hundreds of ousted president Mohamed Morsi's supporters in clashes in Cairo.
Several female relatives waiting outside the courtroom fainted on hearing news of the verdict.
"My son does not even pray, he does not even know where the mosque is," said one woman, whose son was among the 529 sentenced to death in March.
The rioting last August 14 erupted as news spread that police had killed hundreds of Morsi supporters while dispersing two protest camps in Cairo.
The court's verdicts can be appealed at the Court of Cassation, which would probably order a new trial or commute the sentences for the 529 already given the death penalty, legal expert Gamal Eid said.
Defence lawyers boycotted the last session, branding it "farcical" after the mass death sentencing which the United Nations denounced as a breach of international human rights law.
Defence lawyer Khaled Elkomy claims that 60 per cent of the 529 defendants, including teachers and some doctors, have evidence that "proves they were not present the day they were accused of attacking the Matay police station" in Minya, a statement released by human rights group Avaaz said.
The government has defended the court's handling of the case, insisting that the sentences were passed only "after careful study" and were subject to appeal.
Prosecutor Abdel Rahim Abdel Malek defended the charges against the 529.
"We have strong evidence that incriminates all those sentenced to death," he told AFP.
"We have videos, witness accounts... documents that prove that the Muslim Brotherhood had called on its supporters to attack police stations and public and private property in case the sit-in at Rabaa al-Adawiya (in Cairo) was broken up, and that's what happened," he said.
Last month's death sentences sent a chill through opponents of the military-installed regime, which has held mass trials of thousands of those alleged to be Muslim Brotherhood supporters since Morsi's ouster.
At least 1,000 people have been sentenced since December, all in groups of 10 or more. Jail terms passed range from six months to life, as well as the death penalty.
Amnesty International says that more than 1,400 people have been killed in the police crackdown since the army overthrew Morsi, Egypt's first elected and civilian leader.
Morsi and Badie, jailed as part of the crackdown, each face several trials.