(AFP Photo)
The Boulaq Abu El-Ela Misdemeanour Court sentenced 16 arrested on the backdrop of the 6 October violence to three years in prison.
The Anti-Coup Alliance, also known as the National Council to Support Legitimacy, said that the 16 were “anti-coup protesters.” They were sentenced to two years on charges of rallying and one year for “thuggery,” Aswat Masriya reported.
Yasser Shaarawy, a lawyer from the Anti-Coup Alliance asked: “How can they be arrested, investigated and sentenced in 20 days?” He added that some people’s trials drag on for “five to six years” before being sentenced.
Shaarawy expects the defendants’ lawyers to appeal the court’s decision.
The 16 defendants were arrested on 6 October and tried for their involvement in the rioting that took place in Boulaq Abu El-Ela on the day that marked the 40th anniversary of the beginning of the 1973 October War.
Deadly violence broke out in the afternoon of 6 October, leaving over 50 dead and around 250 injured. The majority of the violence occurred in Greater Cairo. Rival demonstrations were scheduled to be held in Tahrir Square. The violence was followed by conflicting reactions from different parties and groups, reflecting the general state of polarisation in the country.
Ever since the removal of Former President Mohamed Morsi on 3 July, the Anti-Coup Alliance, which includes the Muslim Brotherhood as well as several parties and unions, has repeatedly called for protests rejecting Morsi’s ouster.
In a wide-ranging crackdown on Morsi supporters, Brotherhood figures have been facing arrests. Morsi, along with his presidential team, were taken into custody on 3 July. Among the Brotherhood figures who are detained is Supreme Guide Mohamed Badie; former MPs Mohamed Al-Beltagy and Farid Ismail, and former Shura Council member Sobhi Saleh are also behind bars.
