Egyptian court postpones trial of murderers of Shia preacher Sheikh Hassan Shehata

The Second Circuit for Counterterrorism in the Badr Courts Complex in the Egyptian capital, Cairo, has postponed the trial of the defendants in the murder of the Shia convert Sheikh Hassan Shehata, who was killed in 2013 because of his Shia beliefs.

Cairo Newspaper reported that the court decided to resume the trial of one of the defendants in the murder of Shia cleric Hassan Shehata, known in the media as “The Shia Sedition,” on December 14th.

The session was chaired by Counselor Hamada Al-Sawy and attended by Counselors Mohamed Ammar, Raouf Zaki, and Dr. Ali Ammar.

The prosecution charged the defendants with committing crimes of gathering with the intent of premeditated murder, and the intentional murder of Hassan Mohamed Shehata, one of the prominent Shia figures in Egypt, and three others of his sons and followers.

The court also ruled that the perpetrators went to the place where the victims were, carrying knives, sticks, and Molotov cocktails, and forced them to come out, then attacked and stabbed them.

The preacher and cleric Sheikh Hassan Ahmed Shehata, was born in 1946 in the village of Herbit in the Egyptian governorate of Sharqiya.

He was known for his love for Ahlulbayt, peace be upon them, his establishment of mourning ceremonies for Imam Hussein, peace be upon him, his scientific debates with Wahhabis and Salafis, as well as his positions in defending the Shia presence in Egypt until he was martyred.