Egypt refers 30 people to court for alleged Daesh links

By Sayed Fathi

CAIRO

Prosecution authorities on Wednesday referred 30 people to Egypt’s High State Security Court to face charges of establishing "cells" for the Daesh terrorist group and attacking churches, according to a local judicial source.

The source, who was quoted anonymously by local media outlets, said Attorney-General Nabil Sadek had referred 30 people to the security court for allegedly setting up “terrorist cells” and targeting churches in different parts of the country between 2013 and 2017.

Along with allegedly targeting Christians, the defendants also face charges of having accused President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi -- and the entire Egyptian security apparatus -- of apostasy from Islam.

In the years following Egypt’s 2013 military coup, a number of churches were attacked by shadowy militant groups, leaving dozens of people dead.