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Beltagy sentenced for one year with penal labour for insulting court

February 16, 2018 at 1:51 am

A senior political figure of the Muslim Brotherhood, Mohamed Beltagy, is seen behind prison bars in Cairo, Egypt on 10 December 2016 [Moustafa Elshemy / Anadolu Agency]

The Cairo Criminal Court sentenced the Muslim Brotherhood leader, Mohamed Beltagy, for one year in prison with penal labour for insulting the court during the hearing. Beltagy is on trial for “breaking into prisons”.

Beltagy was charged with insulting the court, when after he sarcastically laughed, which the court considered to be a violation of the court’s dignity.

Beltagy’s lawyer apologised for the defendant’s laughter and went on to say that the defendant’s statement was not directed at the court as a mockery or a derogation. He repeated his apology and asked the court to listen to the defendant regarding this matter.

The re-trial of the defendants comes after the Court of Cassation overturned the sentences issued by the Criminal Court on November 2017.

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