Inside Story

Is Egypt’s judiciary independent?

A series of mass death sentences has led many to question the integrity of Egyptian judges.

Egypt has executed six members of an armed group with links to the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) group for carrying out an attack on soldiers near the capital, Cairo, last year.

On Saturday, an Egyptian court sentenced to death Mohamed Morsi, the former president, and more than 100 supporters of the Muslim Brotherhood.

This was the latest in a series of such verdicts in the country since the military overthrew Morsi almost two years ago.

Now, the judiciary stands accused of being a political tool in the hands of the military. But would the crackdown backfire?

Presenter: Mike Hanna

Guests:

Maha Azzam – head of the Egyptian Revolutionary Council and political activist.

Dalia Fahmy – assistant professor of political science at Long Island University.

Nicholas Piachaud – Egypt researcher at Amnesty International.