Former Egyptian president Mohammed Morsi sentenced to death

An Egyptian court has sentenced the country's ousted President Mohammed Morsi to death.

The verdict was announced on in Cairo on Saturday (16 May).

The judge referred the death sentences of Morsi and 105 other prisoners to the country's highest authority on religion and Sharia law, Grand Mufti Shawki Ibrahim Abdel-Karim Allam, for his approval.

If Allam agrees with the sentence to execute Morsi, the former president can still appeal.

The sentence comes after Morsi stood trial for escaping prison during Egypt's 2011 revolution.

During the revolution, prison guards deserted their posts across the country, leading to thousands of prisoners fleeing imprisonment.

Contemporary reports differed about how Morsi escaped: some said that he had the assistance of friends and family while other said he, and other Muslim Brotherhood members, were broken out by armed Brotherhood militia.

Around 33 other prisoners, including seven senior Muslim Brotherhood members, also fled the jail with Morsi.

The former leader of the Muslim Brotherhood is already serving a 20-year prison sentence for ordering the arrest and torture of protestors during his time in power, during June 2012 to July 2013.

Morsi was Egypt's first democratically elected president. He was overthrown in a military coup in July 2013 following mass demonstrations against his rule. Since then, his Muslim Brotherhood party has been banned and many of its supporters have been arrested.

Opposition to Morsi gained momentum when he bestowed far-reaching powers on himself.