Egypt sentences activist Sanaa Seif to 18 months in prison
Seif, who had been in pretrial detention since June, was convicted Wednesday of spreading false news and misusing social media.
Egypt has sentenced prominent activist Sanaa Seif to 1½ years in prison, her sister said Wednesday, in what Amnesty International called a “travesty of justice.”
According to a tweet from Mona Seif, the Cairo Criminal Court convicted her sister of "spreading false news related to the COVID-19 pandemic," "using a Facebook account to terrorize people” and insulting a police officer.
Seif’s lawyer said the ruling will be appealed. The verdict was delivered Wednesday without the 27-year-old activist present in the courtroom.
“Today’s verdict is yet another crushing blow for the right to freedom of expression in Egypt,” Amnesty’s regional deputy director, Amna Guellali, said in a statement. “The Egyptian authorities have yet again demonstrated their unrelenting intent to punish any criticism of their dismal human rights record.”
