Nine sentenced to death

Cairo - A Cairo military court yesterday condemned to death nine of the militant Islamist movement's top leaders, Siona Jenkins…

Cairo - A Cairo military court yesterday condemned to death nine of the militant Islamist movement's top leaders, Siona Jenkins reports. The sentences marked the end of Egypt's largest trial of Islamist militants since the assassination of President Anwar Sadat in 1981, with 107 defendants, almost all of whom were charged with belonging to the banned Jihad (Holy War) organisation, as well as a variety of other offences.

Eleven of the accused received life terms, 20 were acquitted and the remainder received sentences ranging from seven to 15 years in jail with hard labour.

Sixty of the alleged militants, including the nine sentenced to death, were tried in absentia and included several of the most famous names in the world of Egypt's militants.

  • Join The Irish Times on WhatsApp and stay up to date

  • Sign up for push alerts to get the best breaking news, analysis and comment delivered directly to your phone

  • Listen to In The News podcast daily for a deep dive on the stories that matter