An Egyptian military court sentenced four Islamic militants to death yesterday for a wave of attacks in 1994 and 1995, including the murder of a general leading the fight against fundamentalist violence. The four were part of a group of 97 suspected members of Jamaa Islamiyaa, Egypt's largest militant organisation, on trial at the army base of Huckstep, north of Cairo.
Among those condemned to death was Mohammad Fawzi Ibrahim, who was already given a death sentence in another trial of Islamic militants in 1995.
The Huckstep court also handed down eight life sentences of hard labour, while 54 were jailed for between three and 15 years with hard labour. Six defendants were sentenced to one to 10 years behind bars and 25 were acquitted.
The military court's verdicts are not subject to appeal.
For the first time, five women were in the dock of a military court, for concealing arms and membership in the outlawed Jamaa. Four of them, including a grandmother, were jailed for between one and 15 years, and one was acquitted.
One of the accused men, Mr Hassan Sayed Hassan (30), died in prison. His lawyer charged that his death was caused by neglect.
A total of 91 Islamic militants have been sentenced to death since a wave of Islamic fundamentalist unrest erupted in Egypt in March 1992, costing some 1,230 lives. Fifty-seven executions have been carried out.
Relatives of the accused wept and cried out Islamic slogans as the latest verdicts were read out.
The 97 suspects in Huckstep, the highest such number on trial at the same time, were charged with involvement in several attacks, including the April 1994 murder of Gen Raouf Khariyat.
The general was head of an interior ministry cell charged with battling Islamic militancy.
Other charges in the trial included the murder of a police officer and nine bombings.