Middle East

Egypt jails son of Brotherhood leader on arms charges

Anas al-Beltagi receives five-year jail term for arms possession

04.10.2015 - Update : 08.10.2015
Egypt jails son of Brotherhood leader on arms charges

CAIRO

An Egyptian court on Saturday jailed Anas al-Beltagi, the son of Muslim Brotherhood leader Mohamed al-Beltagi, and two other people for five years for arms possession, a judicial source told Anadolu Agency.

Prosecutors had accused the trio of arms possession, inciting violence and joining a “terrorist” group – a reference to the Muslim Brotherhood, which the authorities designated a terrorist organization in 2013.

Saturday’s verdict is still subject to appeal.

Beltagi senior was arrested by Egyptian security forces in mid-2013 following the violent dispersal of two Cairo sit-ins held in support of President Mohamed Morsi, a Brotherhood leader who was ousted by the military after serving only one year in office.

Beltagi’s daughter, Asmaa, was killed during the sit-in dispersal, which left hundreds of pro-Morsi protesters dead.

His youngest son, Khaled, was also detained by Egyptian security forces last month.

The Brotherhood leader has been slapped with three separate death sentences for allegedly committing acts of violence and conspiring with Palestinian resistance group Hamas and Lebanon's Hezbollah with a view to carrying out “terrorist acts” in Egypt.

Since mid-2013, when Morsi – Egypt’s first freely elected president – was ousted in a military coup, the Brotherhood has remained the target of a harsh crackdown by the Egyptian authorities.

The crackdown, which remains ongoing, has seen hundreds of Brotherhood members killed and tens of thousands thrown behind bars. 

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