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Former Egyptian president Mohamed Morsi sentenced to death over jail break Former Egyptian president Mohamed Morsi sentenced to death over jail break
(35 minutes later)
An Egyptian court has sentenced deposed President Mohamed Morsi to death on charges of killing, kidnapping and other offences during a 2011 mass jail break. An Egyptian court has confirmed the death sentence of former President Mohamed Morsi.
Morsi's court-appointed lawyer says he will appeal the sentence. Morsi was charged with killing, kidnapping and other offences during a 2011 mass jail break, and a court-appointed lawyer says he will appeal the sentence.
The general guide of the Muslim Brotherhood, Mohamed Badie, and four other Brotherhood leaders were also handed the death penalty. More than 80 others were sentenced to death in absentia. The ruling reaffirms an initial decision in May, when Morsi was sentenced to death alongside more than 100 others for killing and kidnapping policemen, attacking police facilities and breaking out of jail during the 2011 uprising against Mubarak.
Earlier today, the court sentenced Morsi to life in prison in a separate case related to conspiring with foreign groups. He became Egypt's first democratically elected president  following the uprising against Hosni Mubarak in 2011 but was himself overthrown by the army in 2013 after mass unrest.
The Islamist became Egypt's first democratically elected president after the downfall of longtime autocrat Hosni Mubarak in 2011 but was himself overthrown by the army in 2013 after mass protests against his rule.
The court last month convicted Morsi and his fellow defendants of killing and kidnapping policemen, attacking police facilities and breaking out of jail during the 2011 uprising against Mubarak.
The death sentence request had drawn criticism from the United States, other Western governments and human rights groups.The death sentence request had drawn criticism from the United States, other Western governments and human rights groups.
After Tuesday's sentencing, a senior Muslim Brotherhood member said the trial had “fallen below all international standards”. A senior Muslim Brotherhood member said the trial had "fallen below all international standards."
“This verdict is a nail in the coffin of democracy in Egypt,” Yahya Hamid, a former minister in Morsi's cabinet and head of international relations for the Brotherhood, told a news conference in Istanbul. "This verdict is a nail in the coffin of democracy in Egypt," Yahya Hamid, a former minister in Morsi's cabinet and head of international relations for the Brotherhood, told a news conference in Istanbul.
Morsi, Badie and 15 others were also given life sentences — which under Egyptian law, means serving 25 years — for conspiring with the Palestinian group Hamas, which rules Gaza. They included senior Brotherhood figures Essam el-Erian and Saad el-Katatni. Morsi was calm and smiled slightly in his blue prison suit as the judge read out the first sentence in the court in the Police Academy.
The court sentenced Muslim Brotherhood leaders Khairat el-Shater, Mohamed el-Beltagy and Ahmed Abdelaty to death in the same case. Death sentences were also handed to 13 other defendants in absentia. The verdicts can be appealed.
Judge Shaaban el-Shami, said the Grand Mufti, Egypt's top religious authority, had said in his opinion that the death sentence was permissible for the defendants who had been referred to him.
Morsi, dressed in a blue prison suit, was calm and smiled slightly as the judge read out the first sentence in the court in the Police Academy.
The defendants chanted “Down, down with military rule,” as they were led into the court.The defendants chanted “Down, down with military rule,” as they were led into the court.
Morsi has said the court is not legitimate, describing legal proceedings against him as part of a coup led by former army chief Abdel Fattah al-Sisi in 2013. Morsi has describing legal proceedings against him as part of a coup led by former army chief Abdel Fattah al-Sisi in 2013.
Since Morsi's overthrow, Egyptian authorities have waged a crackdown on Islamists in which hundreds have been killed and thousands arrested. The Muslim Brotherhood's general guide and four other Brotherhood leaders were also handed the death penalty in today's rulings, while more than 80 others were sentenced to death in absentia.
Sisi, now president, says the Brotherhood poses a grave threat to national security. The group maintains it is committed to peaceful activism. Earlier today, the court sentenced Morsi to life in prison in a separate case related to conspiring with foreign groups.
Judge Shaaban el-Shami, said the Grand Mufti, Egypt's top religious authority, had said in his opinion that the death sentence was permissible for the defendants who had been referred to him.
Since Morsi was overthrown, hundreds have been killed and thousands arrested in a crackdown by Egyptian authorities on Islamists.
President and former general Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, says the Brotherhood poses a grave threat to national security. The group maintains it is committed to peaceful activism.
Despite US lawmakers' concerns that Egypt is lagging on democratic reforms, Cairo remains one of Washington's closest security allies in the region.Despite US lawmakers' concerns that Egypt is lagging on democratic reforms, Cairo remains one of Washington's closest security allies in the region.
Relations cooled after Morsi was overthrown but ties with Sisi have steadily improved.Relations cooled after Morsi was overthrown but ties with Sisi have steadily improved.
In late March, US President Barack Obama lifted a hold on a supply of arms to Cairo, authorizing deliveries of US weapons valued at over $1.3 billion.In late March, US President Barack Obama lifted a hold on a supply of arms to Cairo, authorizing deliveries of US weapons valued at over $1.3 billion.
Reuters Additional reporting Reuters