By Staff, Agencies

An Egyptian military court sentenced 38 people to life in prison on Sunday over protests in 2019.

The court tried 23 of those people in absentia.

They were charged with inciting violence against security forces and state institutions during anti-government protests in September 2019 in the port city of Suez — a rare show of dissent since President Abdel-Fattah Al-Sisi took power in 2014.

The court also sentenced 44 other people, including children, to jail terms ranging from five to 15 years over the same charges.

Egyptian authorities arrested some 4,000 people after the protests, including well-known academics, activists and lawyers. Rights groups estimate Egypt now holds more than 65,000 political prisoners.

In 2013, after Al-Sisi was involved in a coup to oust President Mohammed Morsi, Egypt passed a law that effectively banned all protests except those authorized by police.