In an interview on Al-Nahar satellite channel on Wednesday, presidential spokesman Ihab Badawi clarified remarks made the evening before by interim President Adly Mansour during an interview on state television. Badawi said those tried in military courts used violence against members of the armed forces securing vital installations. During the interim president's first interview since the beginning of his tenure, he explained that "there have been no civilians referred to military courts" the same day that a member of the Muslim Brotherhood was handed a life sentence in a military trial in a case that 48 other defendants were given sentences between five and 15 years, and 12 others were acquitted. Badawi explained that trying civilians in military courts was according to law "in the case of the use of violence and force against those securing vital and governmental installations." He added that those convicted were found guilty of widespread violence and for murder, attempted murder of both security forces and civilians, spreading chaos, destroying infrastructure, burning three churches, and destroying nine armoured vehicles. Civil court judges, said Badawi, were out of their jurisdiction when dealing with attacks on military installations. The spokesman added that the data used by the president in the interview had been collected the day before. Civilians continue being tried in military courts following former president Mohamed Morsi's ouster. Article 19 of the constitutional declaration made by Mansour states that the military judiciary specialises in all lawsuits which concern the armed forces. The 2012 Constitution, strongly supported by the Muslim Brotherhood, also allowed for civilians to stand trial before military tribunals.
