Egyptian regime courts today sentenced a whopping 529 people to death. All were charged and convicted for being supporters of the Muslim Brotherhood, the party that won Egypt’s only free elections in 2012. The Muslim Brotherhood is now considered a “terrorist” group in Egypt (and among its Saudi and UAE backers). In this Egypt under military rule is seeking to set a new Guinness record for execution, bypassing China, Iran, Saudi Arabia, and the USA (still including Texas). (No reliable figures are available for North Korea).
At this rate, Egypt will switch: from the most humorous Middle East country it is heading towards becoming the most humorless country not only in the Arab world, not only in the Middle East. Possibly more humorless than Jordan and Palestine and Israel and Syria and Turkey and Iran: that would be quite an achievement. If we toss Libya and Algeria to the above mix, it would be a bad miracle (you can’t get less humorous than that in all of MENA). I suspect Egypt is well on the way to becoming the most humorless country south of the Korean Peninsula. That loss of humor also may qualify Egypt for eventual GCC membership.
That tells us one other thing: the military junta kangaroo courts will also sentence deposed president Morsi to death. Unless the Saudi King or some UAE potentate issues a reprieve reducing the death sentences to life in prison.
Cheers
mhg
