Egyptian TV host sentenced to death in drug case
Photo: Instagram/ Sarah Khalifa
An Egyptian court sentenced television presenter Sarah Khalifa and 11 other individuals to death by hanging following their conviction on drug-related charges on Saturday.
According to the state-owned al-Ahram newspaper, they belonged to a criminal syndicate that imported raw ingredients to manufacture narcotics with the intent to sell them. Authorities also recovered illegal firearms and ammunition from the group.
Khalifa, 39, host of the crime-focused television program Mission Impossible, has consistently denied the charges.
The court first announced the verdict last month, but confirmed the sentence a month later after obtaining a formal religious opinion from the Grand Mufti of Egypt, which remains a mandatory legal step in capital punishment cases. The defendants still hold the right to appeal the decision.
During the trial, the court heard evidence that security forces had confiscated over 750 kilograms (1,653 pounds) of narcotics alongside imported raw materials used in drug manufacturing.
The prosecution team built their case on statements from 20 witnesses, as reported by al-Ahram, along with electronic evidence that included conversations and video recordings.
According to the state-run Akhbar al-Youm newspaper, when the judge questioned Khalifa about her alleged role during a court appearance last September, she said she had never seen any drugs until officers photographed her alongside the illicit substances inside the anti-narcotics authority offices.
Meanwhile, human rights organization Amnesty International released a 2025 report documenting that Egyptian courts handed down 492 death sentences that year, resulting in 23 executions.
The report noted that courts found the defendants guilty of drug trafficking and rape, “crimes that did not amount to ‘intentional killing’ to which the use of the death penalty must be restricted under international law and standards.”
Source: BBC (adapted)
