Egypt’s ousted president Morsi to stand trial for ‘inciting murder’ charges

Egyptian President Mohammed Morsi delivers a speech in Cairo, Egypt. Egypt's state news agency said Sunday, Sept. 1, 2013, the country's top prosecutor has referred ousted Islamist President Mohammed Morsi to trial on charges of inciting the killing of opponents protesting outside his palace while he was in office. (Photo : AP Photo/Egyptian Presidency, File)

Egyptian prosecutors referred Sunday ousted president Mohamed Morsi and 14 other people to a criminal court over the killing of a journalist and the violence that erupted over his controversial presidential declaration last year, official news agency MENA reported.

The prosecutor general, Hesham Barakat, accused Morsi of inciting violence and committing murders in the Itihadyah area near the presidential palace on Dec. 5, 2012 after his opponents protested over his presidential declaration that gave him absolute powers.

The other 14 suspects all belonged to the Muslim Brotherhood, the main political group behind Morsi, MENA added. More than 350 members of the Brotherhood have been arrested, including its General Guide Mohamed Badie, amid continuing protests organized by the group after the Egyptian army ousted Morsi in early July.

Morsi became the first democratically-elected president in Egypt’s history in mid-2012. But he was ousted by the military on July 3 after millions of Egyptians took to the street, accusing him of grabbing powers and mismanaging the economy.

Supporters of Egypt's ousted President Mohammed Morsi chant slogans during a demonstration in Dalga Village, in upper Egypt, Friday, Aug. 30, 2013. Tens of thousands of protesters and Muslim Brotherhood supporters rallied Friday throughout Egypt against a military coup and a bloody security crackdown, though tanks and armored police vehicles barred them from converging in major squares. The sign in the foreground reads, "The Egyptian people said it strong – Morsi is my president and has legitimacy — he is coming back soon."(Photo : AP Photo/Roger Anis, El Shorouk Newspaper)

The Brotherhood and its supports, calling the military move a coup, have since held large scale protests, demanding nothing short of Morsi’s full reinstatement.

Clashes between Brotherhood supporters and the military resulted in deadly violence in late July, with the army killing and injuring thousands of Morsi’s followers, drawing international condemnation.

The latest round of violence erupted on Friday, with at least six people killed and another 190 injured, the Health Ministry said.<Xinhua/NEWSis>