Qatar calls for release of Mursi

DOHA: Qatar expressed “deep concern” on Wednesday over a death sentence handed down by an Egyptian court against ousted President Muhammad Mursi and called for his release.
“Doha adds its voice to the countries calling for the verdict to be quashed and Mursi released,” said the statement on the official Qatar News Agency.
An Egyptian court on Tuesday upheld a death sentence handed down against Mursi on charges of plotting jailbreaks and attacks on police during the country’s 2011 uprising.
It also sentenced him to life in prison on charges of spying for Iran and militant groups including the Palestinian movement Hamas, several of whose leaders are based in Qatar.
The Egyptian court also upheld death sentences against around 100 other defendants, including the Qatar-based scholar Sheikh Yusuf Qaradawi, who was tried in absentia.
“The death sentences against political dissidents in Egypt harm security and stability, and close the door to reconciliation and harmony,” the Qatari statement said.