European Parliament condemns Egypt's death penalties

By Yusuf Hatip

BRUSSELS (AA) - The European Parliament (EP) condemned the Egyptian government for the use of the death penalty, calling for the country to "halt any imminent executions", according to a resolution on Thursday.

The European Parliament in their resolution on executions in Egypt stated that they are "seriously concerned" about the mass trials by Egyptian courts and the "large number of death sentences handed down by them".

In the resolution the EP also called on the Egyptian authorities “to review all pending death sentences in order to ensure that those convicted in flawed trials will have a fair retrial".

Additionally the EP expressed its concerns about the basic human rights restrictions of the Cairo administration and called for an end to all forms of violence and hate speech in the country.

Egypt has been roiled by turmoil since the military unseated Morsi, the country's first freely elected president, in a 2013 coup.

Since then, hundreds have been sentenced to death on charges of incitement to violence under current Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi.