An Egyptian court on Wednesday sentenced the leader of the Muslim Brotherhood, Mohamed Beltagy, to two years in jail, an official source said.
Cairo's criminal court sentenced Mohamed El-Beltagy, 55, to two years in prison on Wednesday for smiling in the court during a hearing of witnesses in the case known as a media crackdown.
This ruling is preliminary and can be challenged before the Court of Cassation - the highest appeals court - within 60 days of its issuance, in accordance with Egyptian law.
It was not possible to obtain immediate comment from the defense of El-Beltagy, but the latter usually denies the charges against him and considers them fabricated, in exchange for official denial of the independence and impartiality of the judiciary.
Earlier on Wednesday, El-Beltagy asked three questions to former President Hosni Mubarak during his testimony in the "prison break-up" case in which Mohamed Morsi, Egypt's first democratically elected civilian president, is being tried.
Al-Beltaghi drew attention to the local and international media on the backdrop of a statement addressed to Mubarak during today's session, saying: "I pray to God who was a liar that day take his eyes and be blinded." After this saying, the judge ended the talk of Al-Beltagy quickly.
One of the most prominent symbols of the 2011 revolution that overthrew Mubarak, al-Beltagy was sentenced to 60 years' imprisonment in three cases.