CAIRO — Egyptian lawyer Ahmed al-Gizawy and two colleagues were sentenced to jail and lashes by a Jeddah court on charges of smuggling drugs into Saudi Arabia, the state-run Ahram Gate reported, citing unnamed judicial officials.
El-Gizawy was sentenced to five years in prison and 300 lashes, while his colleague Islam Bakr, an Egyptian, was sentenced to six years in prison and 400 lashes. A Saudi was also charged, though no details were given by Ahram on his sentencing.
Egypt’s consulate in Jeddah intends to file an appeal against the ruling, the state-run Middle East News Agency reported, citing Adel Al-Alfy, Egypt’s consul general.
Gizawy was arrested last April at a Saudi airport. Activists say Saudi authorities fabricated charges against the human rights lawyer for his work with Egyptian detainees. He pleaded not guilty.
Saudi authorities had called for the death penalty in the first hearing, which started last July.
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