Egypt court sentences 11 Islamists to life for prison breaks

Cairo: An Egyptian court has sentenced 11 people including the head of the Muslim Brotherhood, Mohammed Badie, to life in prison after a retrial on charges related to mass prison breaks at the height of the 2011 uprising.

The Cairo criminal court on Saturday also sentenced eight others to 15-year imprisonment, on the same national security charges.

This is the latest of several life sentences for Badie.

The court also acquitted eight others. It dropped the charges against the first democratically elected President Mohammed Morsi, who collapsed and died while appearing in a separate trial in June.

Previous sentences against the defendants were annulled in 2016 by the Court of Cassation which ordered their retrial.

Rights groups have repeatedly criticised such sentencings and called on authorities to ensure fair trials.