“We are delighted with today’s news,” said Darragh Mackin, Halawa’s Irish lawyer. Constant delays to his trial and his sentencing meant Halawa remained in pre-trial detention from the time of his arrest. Mass trials have become an increasing feature of Egyptian justice since President Abdel Fatah al-Sisi came to power in 2013. Fifty-two, including Halawa and his sisters, were acquitted. “Ibrahim was arrested as a child for the ‘crime’ of attending a protest, tortured, and tried, facing the death penalty alongside adults in an unfair mass trial.

Source: The Guardian September 18, 2017 14:23 UTC