The Court of Cassation in Egypt upheld death sentences by hanging for 21 defendants in the case known as the "Ansar Beit al-Maqdis" organization, which included charges of armed attacks, the assassination of a police officer and an attempt to assassinate the former Minister of Interior.
And the French Press Agency quoted a judicial official as saying that the court had upheld the punishment of 118 other defendants, with prison terms of up to 25 years.
The Court of Cassation issues final rulings that are not subject to appeal in any manner of litigation.
The court decided to commute the death penalty against one of the defendants to life imprisonment, and commuted the sentences of two people to life imprisonment to “10 years hard labor.”
Among the defendants in the case is the former police officer, Muhammad Owais, who is accused of participating in the assassination of the officer in the National Security Sector (formerly the State Security Service), Muhammad Mabrouk.
The Supreme State Security Criminal Court, headed by Judge Hassan Farid, had convicted the accused of committing the crimes of "establishing and assuming leadership of a terrorist group and joining it" with the aim of "disrupting the provisions of the constitution and laws and preventing state institutions from carrying out their work."
The charges also included "communicating with Hamas, sabotaging state facilities, and possessing firearms, ammunition and explosive materials without a license."