Death sentences to 26 convicts in Aswan clashes revoked

CAIRO – 5 May 2017: Egypt's Court of Cassation cancelled on Thursday death sentences for 26 men convicted of killing about 28 people in deadly tribal clashes in the country’s southern Aswan province.

The court also ordered a retrial of another group of defendants and rejected the appeal of others in the same case.

In April 2014, violent clashes had taken place between the Beni Helal family and the Daboud Nubian tribe that resulted in the killing of about 28 people and the injuring of dozens.

The feud started when Nubian students insulted members of the Arab clan and accused them of working in favor of the overthrown Islamist President Mohammed Morsi, the Associated Press reported.

The Arab Beni Hilal tribe first shot dead four Nubians, including a woman. In response, hundreds of Nubians attacked the Arab neighborhood, killing over a dozen people and put them on carts.

In June 2016, the Qena Criminal Court had sent 26 people to death and 21 others to life in prison. The court also sent 18 defendants for several periods in jail, ranging from 2 to 10 years, while it acquitted 100 others.