Egypt's army-backed government intensified its crackdown on the Islamist opposition, sentencing 52 Muslim Brotherhood members to prison and banning TV channels with perceived Islamist sympathies.
It also mounted a rocket attack on suspected militants on the Sinai peninsula, two months after a military takeover that deposed Mohammed Morsi, Egypt's first democratically elected president.
Court officials said one Brotherhood member was handed down a life sentence, 48 were given jail terms ranging from five to 10 years, and three to 15 years in prison for their role in attacks on soldiers in Suez on August 14, which saw some of the fiercest clashes in recent memory. Twelve defendants were acquitted.
The clampdown since the installation of the military-backed government has targeted a wide range of Islamist leaders, supporters and media channels.
Separately, Cairo administrative court ruled that al-Jazeera television's local station Mubasher Misr, one of the last remaining television channels with perceived Islamist sympathies, should be taken off-air.
The Egyptian arm of Qatar’s media empire has faced hostility since the change of government. Its offices have been repeatedly raided, with dozens of staff detained. Two remain in custody.
