CAIRO
An agency affiliated with Egypt's presidency on Saturday described as "unacceptable intervention" comments made by countries and NGOs on a court decision earlier in the day to consult Egypt's religious authority on possible death sentences against ousted president Mohamed Morsi and 121 other people.
The State Information Service – known to be the official media and public relations agency of the government – denounced reactions made against the decision, saying these reactions reflected "ignorance".
"The judge did not issue any verdicts," the State Information Service said in a statement.
It added that the judge only referred the files of the ousted president and the 121 other defendants to the Grand Mufti to consult him on possible death sentences against them, noting that a verdict would be issued in the case on June 2.
It noted that these reactions were also "unacceptable intervention in the work of Egypt's judiciary".
"They overlook a basic principle of all democratic systems: the independence of the judiciary," the agency added.
Earlier in the day, an Egyptian criminal court referred the files of the ousted president and 121 other co-defendants to the Grand Mufti to consult him before death sentences are issued against them on June 2.
Morsi and his co-defendants are accused of mass prison break during the 2011 popular uprising that ousted then president Hosni Mubarak and espionage for the Palestinian faction Hamas.
The opinions of the Grand Mufti are not binding to the court, which will issue the verdict on June 2. The potential verdict is also subject to appeal.
The court decision was criticized by Turkey and Germany and several NGOs, including Amnesty International.
The State Information Service, meanwhile, said reactions to the decision reflected what it described as "double standards". It said some countries that pretended to be democratic detained citizens for years without charges or trials, denying them the right to have defense lawyers under total international silence.
It said the case of Morsi and the other 121 defendants was considered by a civilian, not an exceptional court, and that the defendants have the right to appeal the verdict when it is issued.
