An Egyptian court sentenced Mohamed
Badie, leader of the outlawed Muslim Brotherhood, and 13 other senior members
of the group to death for inciting chaos and violence, and gave a life term to
a U.S.-Egyptian citizen for ties to the Brotherhood.
The men were among thousands of
people detained after freely elected Islamist president Mohamed Mursi was
toppled in 2013 by the military under Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, who is now
president.
Sisi described the Brotherhood as a
major security threat. The group says it is committed to peaceful activism and
had nothing to do with Islamist militant violence in Egypt since Mursi's fall
following mass protests against his rule.
Egypt's mass trials of Brotherhood members
and people accused of links to the group, as well as its tough crackdown on
Islamist and liberal opposition alike, have drawn international criticism of
its judicial system and human rights record.
The sentences, pronounced at a
televised court session on Saturday, can be appealed before Egypt's highest
civilian court in a process that could take years to reach a final verdict.
U.S.-Egyptian citizen Mohamed Soltan
was sentenced to life in jail for supporting the veteran Islamist movement and
transmitting false news. He is the son of Brotherhood preacher Salah Soltan,
who was among those sentenced to death.
Badie is the Brotherhood's General
Guide and has already been sentenced to several death and life sentences. His
deputy Khairat El-Shater was given a life sentence on Saturday.
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