2023-10-08 01:16:01
CAIRO (AP) — An Egyptian appeals court on Saturday upheld the six-month prison sentence imposed on a staunch government critic who was found guilty of defamation last month in a case stemming from an online dispute.
Hisham Kassem, a prominent leader of the Free Current, a coalition of mostly liberal parties, was convicted of insulting and defaming Kamal Abu Eita, a former labor minister and opposition figure. He was also convicted of verbally attacking a police officer.
Kassem was sentenced last month to six months in prison and fined 20,000 Egyptian pounds (regarding $647), according to Hossam Bahgat, director of the Egyptian Initiative for Personal Rights, which represents Kassem in court.
Kassem appealed the sentence to the appeals court, which upheld it on Saturday, according to Bahgat.
Kassem, who for decades ran a series of news outlets that helped keep pockets of independent free press alive in Egypt, was arrested in August following prosecutors questioned him regarding the accusations leveled by Abu Eita.
Prosecutors initially ordered Kassem released on condition that he post bail of 5,000 Egyptian pounds ($161). But Kassem refused to pay and was taken to a Cairo police station, where he allegedly insulted an officer.
Kassem and his lawyers rejected the accusations.
The case drew condemnation from human rights groups and renewed global attention on Egypt’s poor human rights record. Amnesty International stated that the charges were politically motivated.
Egypt, a close ally of the United States, has carried out a broad crackdown on dissent over the past decade, imprisoning thousands of people. Most of those imprisoned are supporters of former Islamist president Mohammed Morsi, but the crackdown has also targeted prominent secular activists.
1696728019
#Egyptian #court #ratifies #6month #prison #sentence #government #critic
