Britain voices concern over Egypt court sentencing 528 people to death

British Foreign Secretary William Hague on Monday expressed his "deep concern" over the 528 death sentences passed in an Egyptian court, urging the Egyptian authorities to ensure "full respect" for the defendants' rights.

An Egyptian criminal court ordered Monday to sentence 528 members of the Muslim Brotherhood to death over allegedly assaulting police stations in the upper Egyptian province of Minya last August, state-run Nile TV reported.

The foreign secretary also voiced his worries over the reports of the court's shortcomings in judicial process.

"Reports that many of the accused were tried in their absence and that defendants may not have been adequately represented are also deeply worrying," Hague warned.

"We urge the Egyptian authorities to ensure full respect for defendants' rights, and hope they will review this unacceptable sentence," he added.

Hague also said Britain, which has totally abolished capital punishment, opposes the death penalty in all circumstances "as a matter of principle."

The Brotherhood suspects were charged of attacking a police premise in Mattai district and killing its deputy head after the dispersal of ousted president Mohamed Morsi's main supporters' sit-in last August.

Only 123 of the defendants were present. The rest were either released, out on bail or on the run. The court also acquitted other 17 defendants, according to local media reports.