The Giza Criminal Court handed preliminary death penalties to five defendants on Saturday in the "October Cell" case, according to state-run Al-Ahram. The court referred the files of the five defendants to the Grand Mufti of the Republic for approval as per Egyptian law, and scheduled the final rulings of the case for 20 September. The defendants are facing charges of "forming a terrorist cell, assaulting security forces guarding a church in the October 6 suburb, killing one officer and attempting to attack army and police personnel". Scores of supporters of ousted president Mohamed Morsi and suspected "terrorists" have been handed preliminary death sentences by Egyptian courts. Last May the Minya Criminal Court handed down the death penalty to more than 500 people accused of "attacking a police station and murdering one police officer", in the sectarian violence that took place after the dispersal of pro-Morsi sit-ins on 14 August. Acts of violence spread across Egypt after Morsi's ouster last year, resulting in the death of hundreds of protesters, civilians and security personnel.
