Qatar condemns Mursi and Al-Jazeera trial verdicts

Doha : Qatar on Saturday rejected the verdict by an Egyptian court in a spy case linking ousted president Mohamed Mursi to passing state secrets to Doha.

In addition to Mursi’s conviction being upheld and receiving a life sentence, two journalists from the Qatar-based state-funded broadcaster Al-Jazeera were also handed death sentences.

But in a statement released late on Saturday by Qatar’s foreign ministry, officials in Doha said the verdict was unfounded.

“Though it is not final, the verdict is unfounded, goes against truth and contains misleading claims which are contrary to the policy of the State of Qatar towards all sister countries, including Egypt,” said the ministry’s director of information, Ahmed Al Rumaihi.

“The charge of espionage for Qatar against a former president and media men is surprising and unacceptable.”

Rumaihi added that the verdicts lacked “the proper sense of justice.”

Mursi was given life in prison Saturday for leading an unlawful organization and 15 years for having “stolen secret documents concerning state security,” his lawyer said.

But Mursi was acquitted of having supplied classified documents to Qatar, one of his main backers, Abdel Moneim Abdel Maksoud told AFP.

The two Al-Jazeera journalists were tried in absentia.

Egypt has long accused Qatar - and Al-Jazeera - of being sympathetic to the Muslim Brotherhood.