Criminal Court sentences 20 defendants in torching Kerdasa church to 10 yrs

CAIRO - 202 February 2018: In a retrial session held on Tuesday, Cairo Criminal Court sentenced 20 defendants in the case of setting fire to a church in Kerdasa, Giza, in August 2013 to 10 years of rigorous imprisonment and two minors to three years each.

In the first trial the Cairo Criminal Court sentenced the defendants to life, and the two minors to 10 years. The defendants appealed the verdict and the Court of Cassation ordered their retrial.

The Public Prosecution referred the suspects to the Criminal Court in the case and charged them with setting fire to Virgin Church, possessing weapons and terrorizing citizens following the dispersal of Rabaa el Adawya and Nahda sit-ins.