Egypt court sentences 10 Morsi loyalists to 25 years in jail

An Egyptian court sentenced on Saturday ten supporters of ousted Islamist President Mohamed Morsi to 25 years in prison over anti-government protests last year, official MENA news agency reported.
Four of the ten defendants have been inside the dock of Mansoura Criminal Court while the other six have been sentenced in absentia.
The verdict comes a couple of days after Morsi's supporters staged nationwide marches to mark the first anniversary of the security dispersal of two major pro-Morsi sit-ins in Cairo and Giza, which left at least 1,000 killed and thousands others arrested.
Confrontation between security forces and protesters across Egypt on Thursday left seven people killed including a policeman.
Since Morsi's removal by the military in July last year, loyalists of the deposed president have been holding constant anti- government protests denouncing his overthrow as "a military coup."
The Muslim Brotherhood group, from which Morsi hailed, has been blacklisted by Egyptian authorities as "a terrorist organization" last December and its members were also banned by a court ruling in April from running for presidential and parliamentary elections.
Most of Morsi's loyalists are currently behind the bars, including Morsi himself and the Brotherhood top chief Mohamed Badie, over various charges including inciting violence.
Extremist groups have killed hundreds through several terrorist attacks against police and military personnel and premises since the military ousted Morsi.
Ex-military chief Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi, who led Morsi's ouster following anti-Brotherhood mass protests, was elected in June as Egypt's new president.