by Zachary Lucas
Impunity Watch Reporter, Middle East
CAIRO, Egypt — An Egyptian Court sentenced six people to death including two Al Jazeera journalists. The six people convicted were accused of espionage in relation to leaked documents to Qatar.
The presiding judge in the case, Judge Mohammed Shirin Fahmy, recommended the death sentence for the six people accused of leaking secret documents to Qatar. All capital offense cases are then delivered to Egypt’s Grand Mufti, the nation’s top Muslim theological authority, for approval. Judge Fahmy quoted the Mufti’s office saying that the six defendants brought harm to their country by providing Qatar with documents concerning the Egyptian army. Judge Fahmy stated they betrayed their country for ideology.
The two Al Jazeera journalists were identified as Ibrahim Mohammed Helal, former director of news at Al Jazeera’s Arabic channel, and Alaa Omar Mohammed Sablan, former Al Jazeera producter. The other journalist convicted was Asmaa Mohammed al-Khatib, a reporter for Rasd. Rasd is a media network widely suspected of having ties with the Muslim Brotherhood. All three journalists were tried in abstentia.
Al Jazeera condemned the verdicts against their former employees stating that the sentences were “politicized” and “legally baseless.” Amnesty International also called for the “ludicrous charges” to be dropped. Both organizations stated these kinds of convictions of journalists are an affront to freedom of expression and freedom of the press.
Along with the six death sentences, the Egyptian Court also sentenced ousted President Mohammed Morsi to life in prison. Morsi, the first democratically elected Egyptian president, was ousted by the Egyptian army in 2013 following a popular uprising against Morsi’s leadership. Morsi was found guilty of being a member of the Muslim Brotherhood, a political party that is now-banned in Egypt. Morsi was acquitted of espionage charges.
Since Morsi’s ouster by the military, Egypt’s relations with Qatar have been strained. During Morsi’s time in power, he was supported by Qatar, a tiny but wealthy nation in the region. Egypt claims that Qatar undermines its national security by supporting Islamist groups like the Muslim Brotherhood. Qatar stated that the convictions went “against the truth” and that they harm relations between the two countries.
For more information, please see
ABC News — Egyptian Court Sentences 2 Al-Jazeera Employees to Death — 18 June 2016
CNN — Egypt sentences 6 people to death, including 2 Al Jazeera journalists — 19 June 2016
The Star — Qatar slams Egypt over death sentences in Al Jazeera espionage case — 19 June 2016
