Quick verdict coming for 545 accused
Published:Sunday | March 23, 2014 | 12:00 AM
CAIRO (AP):
A defence lawyer in the trial in southern Egypt of more than 500 defendants accused of committing acts of violence, in reaction to the ouster of Islamist President Mohammed Morsi, says the judge has declared he will issue a verdict after only two sessions.
Lawyer Khaled el-Koumi said the presiding judge in the court in Minya, about 220 kilometres south of Cairo, angrily refused defence demands at yesterday's opening session to postpone the case until they could review documents. He set tomorrow for the verdict.
The trial of 545 alleged members of Morsi's Muslim Brotherhood is one of the largest trials in a crackdown on the group and its allies since Morsi was ousted in July following mass protests against him.
El-Koumi said 423 are being tried in absentia.