Cairo criminal court sentenced on Wednesday, 17 supporters of ousted Islamist president Mohamed Morsi in absentia to life in prison on charges of rioting in Cairo’s El-Manial district.
The court has also sentenced one defendant to 15 years in prison in the same case.
Last August, El-Manial district witnessed clashes between residents and Morsi supporters which resulted in the deaths of five people.
The prosecution accused the defendants of being part of a terrorist organization, possession of live bullets and ammunition and attempting murder.
The former president Morsi is facing four trials on a variety of charges that could also lead to the death penalty.
Hundreds of Morsi supporters have been sentenced to death in recent months, mostly on charges of murder, attempted murder, initiating violence and joining a terrorist group: the Muslim Brotherhood.
In March, southern Egypt's Minya court sentenced 529 Morsi supporters to death on charges of murdering a police officer. The court later upheld sentences for 37 of them while sentencing the rest to life in prison.
One month later, another Minya court sentenced 683 Morsi supporters, including supreme guide Mohamed Badie, to death for attacking a police station and killing a police officer.
