Say What: Egyptian blogger bags two years jail term for criticizing military government

For criticizing the Egyptian armed forces and allegedly publishing false information, a political activist has bagged two years in prison.

Maikel Nabil Sanad was handed the sentence by an Egyptian military court after an appeal against a previous judgement of three years handed him by a lower court.

Sanad was arrested after posts on his blog (www.maikelnabil.com) made unfavourable comparisons between the military government and that of the former regime of President Hosni Mubarak, toppled in February by a popular uprising.

He is one of 12,000 civilians who have faced military trials this year; a practice critics say deprives the accused of their rights. Amnesty International claims Sanad is a ‘prisoner of conscience’, while the U.S. government has expressed concerns about his detention.