Egypt court jails 50 policemen for striking against government decisions

The low-ranking policemen were also fined 6,000 pounds by the South Sinai court on Thursday.
1 min read
04 August, 2017
The policemen had gone on strike in January [Getty]

An Egyptian court jailed 50 policemen for three years after convicting them on charges related to a strike earlier this year, state media reported.

The low-ranking policemen were also fined 6,000 pounds (roughly $330) by the South Sinai court on Thursday, the state-owned Al-Ahram newspaper reported on its website.

The policemen had gone on strike in January to protest reduced holidays and allegedly "threatened violence" against superior officers.

Life in prison for protesting

Last week a court in Cairo sentenced 43 protesters to life in prison and nine others to up to 10 years, in relation to violent acts said to have been committed during the overthrow of former President Hosni Mubarak in 2011.

Authorities accused the defendants of rioting, vandalism and attacking security forces in clashes that saw at least 12 killed and around 2,000 wounded.

The accused were also collectively fined over 17 million Egyptian pounds ($948,661) for damage to public property.

The verdict was the result of a retrial after initial verdicts issued in 2015 were given in absentia.

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