ISTANBUL
Campaigners have called for international pressure to be brought against Egypt after a judge in the country on Monday recommended that 683 people on trial face the death penalty.
The recommendation came during a mass trial connected to acts of violence in the Upper Egyptian province of Minya last August as supporters of ousted Muslim Brotherhood President Mohamed Morsi were dispersed by security forces.
Muslim Brotherhood leader, Mohamed Badie, is among the 683 defendants. The court set June 21 as the date for issuing its verdict.
In a separate case, the same judge today also sentenced 37 people to death but commuted 491 other death penalties to life imprisonment.
Speaking after the judge’s comments, International Rabia Platform Coordinator Cihangir Isbilir called on Western countries, international organizations and NGOs to stand against Egypt's death penalties.
"The regime in Egypt knows no limits in cruelty," Isbilir said. "Courts began acting like theatres and the law has been completely ruined,” he added.
Isbilir said it was only possible to stop the penalties with strong reaction from the international community. "Those regional and global powers who support the coup represent the abdication of reason, because the case in Egypt could drag the country and the region into a state of chaos," he added.
englishnews@aa.com.tr
