US And EU Urged Egypt to Reverse Mass Trial

The United States, on Tuesday, urged the Egyptian leaders to reverse the court ruling sentencing 682 Muslim Brotherhood supporters to death including the group leader, Mohammed Badie. The much condemned verdict came on Monday, by a court in the southern city of Minya, issuing a death penalty for the supporters of Morsi, who faced charges over an attack on a police station in Minya in 2013 causing the death of a policeman.

The Obama administration had condemned the court ruling, saying that it defied “even the most basic standards of international justice” and had also drawn widespread criticism from human rights groups and the UN. “We urge the Egyptian government to end the use of mass trials, reverse this and previous mass sentences, and ensure that every citizen is afforded due process”, the White House said in a statement.

The European Union’s foreign policy chief said on Tuesday said that the mass sentence violated international law and urged Cairo authorities to ensure defendants’ rights to a fair and timely trial. U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry met with the Egyptian Foreign Minister Nabil Fahmy in Washington on Tuesday to discuss the court ruling. Kerry said that Egypt was going through a “very difficult transitional process”. United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon also expressed his alarm over the death sentences issued by the Egyptian court.

The speed and the fairness of the trials have been questioned by the world leaders. The court prevented defence lawyers from presenting their case, according to Human Right Watch.

Infoeditor