Morsi Dies In Government Custody
By Julian HaydaMorsi Dies In Government Custody
By Julian HaydaFormer Egyptian president Mohamed Morsi collapsed and died during a court appearance in Cairo on Monday, where he was facing charges of espionage over alleged connections with the Palestinian militant group Hamas. According to a BBC report, he spoke for five minutes from within a soundproof cage before fainting, and was pronounced dead at a hospital later that evening.
Following the 2011 Egyptian Revolution that deposed Egypt’s previous president Hosni Mubarak, Morsi, a member of the Muslim Brotherhood, was democratically elected as Egypt’s leader in 2012. He held office for just over a year before being deposed by one of his generals, Abdel Fatah el-Sisi, who then became Egypt’s de facto leader and was elected president the following year. Sisi proceeded to detain Morsi for six years, and reports continually alleged that Morsi was suffering from medical neglect and torture in jail. Human Rights Watch told Al Jazeera in a statement that “the government of Egypt today bears responsibility for [Morsi’s] death, given their failure to provide him with adequate medical care or basic prisoner rights.” Professor Emeritus of Middle East History at Stanford University Joel Beinin joins us to discuss Morsi’s term in office, as well as the Muslim Brotherhood he represented and its current role in Egyptian politics.