Egypt reduces jail terms for 30 convicted of ‘violence’

By Jamal Abdel Moez

CAIRO

A military court Wednesday reduced prison terms handed down earlier against 30 civilians convicted of committing violent acts following Egypt’s 2013 military coup, according to a local legal source.

"The Assiut military court has reduced the jail terms of 30 civilians from 25 years to 10," Khaled al-Koumi, a member of the legal defense team, said in a press statement.

The case dates back four years -- to the period immediately after Egypt’s 2013 military coup -- when 33 people were charged with membership in an “outlawed group”, incitement to violence, and damaging public and private property.

The court later acquitted three of the defendants due to a lack of evidence.

Egypt has been dogged by turmoil since the army ousted Mohamed Morsi, the country's first freely elected president and a Muslim Brotherhood leader, in mid-2013.

Since Morsi’s ouster, the Egyptian authorities have waged a relentless crackdown on his supporters and members of his Muslim Brotherhood group, killing hundreds and throwing thousands behind bars.

By Jamal Abdel Moez

CAIRO

"The Assiut military court has reduced the jail terms of 30 civilians from 25 years to 10," Khaled al-Koumi, a member of the legal defense team, said in a press statement.

The court later acquitted three of the defendants due to a lack of evidence.

Egypt has been dogged by turmoil since the army ousted Mohamed Morsi, the country's first freely elected president and a Muslim Brotherhood leader, in mid-2013.

Since Morsi’s ouster, the Egyptian authorities have waged a relentless crackdown on his supporters and members of his Muslim Brotherhood group, killing hundreds and throwing thousands behind bars.