An Egyptian court sentenced Wednesday 17 supporters of ousted Islamist president Mohamed Morsi to 25 years in prison over anti-government protests last year, official MENA news agency reported.
All the defendants have been sentenced in absentia.
They were charged with riots, weapons possession and murdering five people during their protests in western Cairo's Manyal district after the dispersal of Morsi's loyalists in two main sit- ins camps last August.
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.