18 Morsi supporters given lifer in Egypt

, May 20: An Egyptian court sentenced a supporter of ex-president

to death and 18 to life imprisonment for committing violence and murder while protesting against Morsi's removal last year, state media reported.

The case dates back to July 5 last year, two days after Morsi's military ouster, when a group of pro-Morsi protesters held violent marches. Some of them were recorded, while stabbing and throwing some boys off the roof of a building in Alexandria, Xinhua reported.

The clashes had left 18 people killed and 200 injured, according to official reports.

The case includes 62 defendants and 57 of them were present at Alexandria Criminal Court on Monday while the five fugitives were tried in absentia. They were among the 18 sentenced to life imprisonment. The rest were sentenced from 10 to 15 years.

Morsi, who hailed from the blacklisted Muslim Brotherhood group, was removed by the military last July after mass protests against his one-year rule.

Since Morsi's removal, his supporters have been regularly holding anti-government marches nationwide despite the massive security crackdown on them that left about 1,000 killed and thousands arrested over the past 10 months.

Meanwhile, some extremist Islamist groups supporting Morsi have launched a series of bomb attacks against police and military staff and facilities in Sinai Peninsula, the capital Cairo and different areas across Egypt.

Ex-military chief Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi, who led Morsi's removal, is currently running for president and is expected to make an easy win over his sole leftist rival in the polls slated for May 26 and 27.

IANS