Egypt hands out life jail terms in trial over 2019 protests

CAIRO (AP) — An Egyptian court has handed down life prison sentences to 38 people, including a self-exiled businessman whose social media posts helped to spark anti-government protests. The Egyptian criminal court handling case on Sunday tried in absentia 23 of those sentences to life jail terms, including Egyptian businessman Mohamed Ali. A series of video and other social media posts by Ali, who now lives in Spain, led to scattered street demonstrations in September 2019 over allegations of corruption and other issues. Public protests are rare in Egypt where President Abdel Fattah el-Sissi has overseen a wide-ranging crackdown on dissent.