Egyptian court sentences 43 Arab Spring protesters to life in prison


nsnbc : A Cairo criminal court, on Tuesday, sentenced 43 protesters who participated in protests and riots during the so-called Arab Spring in 2011 to life in prison. A life sentence in Egypt normally equates to 25 years behind bars. The Arab Spring belongs to the most controversial chapters in recent North African and Middle Eastern history.

Egypt_Arab Spring_2011_CairoThe 43 had been charged with rioting, vandalism, attacking of police forces, as well as with setting fire to the Scientific Institute near the Cabinet Headquarters during the 2011 Arab Spring protests that led to the overthrow of long-time Egyptian dictator Hosni Mubarak.

Nine other defendants were sentenced to ten years in prison and one to five years. 92 were acquitted. All in all the court issued verdicts concerning 145 out of 269 who were granted retrial after being sentenced in absentia in 2015. The incident and trial is widely known as “The Cabinet Clashes”.

The 2011 Arab Spring is one of the most controversial issues in recent Middle Eastern and North African history. In Tunisia the Arab Spring resulted in the formation of a new, more democratic government.

morsimaniaIn Egypt long-term dictator Hosni Mubarak was overthrown, just to be substituted by Mohammed Morsi whose regime attempted to establish a Muslim Brotherhood / Islamist form of dictatorship instead, before Morsi was overthrown in a people-powered military coup leading to the presidency of Al-Sisi. Egypt has, however, a long way to go with regard to human rights and participatory and inclusive politics.

In Libya the Arab Spring led to the overthrow of Muammar Qaddafi and the subsequent regression of the most developed African country into poverty and barbarism. Like in Libya, the Arab Spring was also coopted by foreign interests in Syria, leading to an internationally sponsored war against the Syrian government.

In Saudi Arabia and other Gulf Countries, the Arab Spring was oppressed and suffocated before it could endanger the regimes. Currently, several “Arab Spring” protesters are awaiting execution in Saudi Arabia.

CH/L – nsnbc 27.07.2017



Source Article from https://nsnbc.me/2017/07/27/egyptian-court-sentences-43-arab-spring-protesters-to-life-in-prison/

You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

Leave a Reply

Powered by WordPress | Designed by: Premium WordPress Themes | Thanks to Themes Gallery, Bromoney and Wordpress Themes