Cairo Criminal Court postponed on Saturday the trial of former president Mohammed Morsi and 24 other defendants, which include some of his supporters as well as political opponents, in a case that accuses them of “insulting the judiciary” in the media.
The next court session will be held on 22 September with the defendants still in custody. They are facing charges of inciting demonstrations, and toppling the state using Twitter accounts, and deliberately disturbing others by misusing communication tools. Charges also include insulting the judiciary in different TV shows in 2012 and 2013.
The case includes prominent politicians and media figures, including activist Alaa Abdel Fattah, journalist Abdel Halim Kandil, and former members of parliament Amr Hamzawy, Mostafa El-Naggar, and Hamdy El-Fakharany.
According to Egypt’s penal code, insulting the judiciary is defined as an “assault on public officials while doing their job”. It is punishable by a prison sentence that ranges from six months to one year, and a fine between EGP 200 and EGP 500. In case of committing the offense on mass media, the fine can reach up to EGP 10,000.
